Investigators
by Bloodpage-Alchemist
Summary: Some things transcend generations. Head Auror Harry Potter solves crimes and stops criminals. This new request from the ICW, however, brings with it layers of mystery and issues Harry never imagined. To follow this path to its proper end, Harry will be relying on his wits and the notes of the long deceased first investigator: Alphard Black, Detective Necromancer.
1. Chapter 1

It was a cold Autumn evening, the day turning into night much faster than it had in the summer as a married couple ate a late supper, their youngest child sleeping.

"Honestly, sometimes I wish I could steal Ron from the shop," said Harry Potter, shaking his head tiredly. "It's as if a quarter of my force refuses to acknowledge they're too old for our work and the other quarter is so new they might as well still be training!"

He sighed at the tiny bit of chicken and mushroom pie left on his plate, his vivid emerald eyes still showing his irritation.

Ginny, his wife, moved to rub his shoulders lightly as she kissed his cheek, her red hair brushing Harry's ear as she leaned over. "You're a good teacher, Harry. Even if they aren't experienced, with you as their mentor, I know they'll be fine."

Harry smiled, looking embarrassed at such praise even now; despite his career as the Head Auror and his fame, he had not lost his distaste of the spotlight. He tilted his head backwards to look up at Ginny, who looked back at him, their noses touching. They shared a gentle kiss before both paused, hearing what sounded like a knock on the door.

Their ears did not deceive them as it sounded again.

"Are you expecting anyone?" asked Ginny, looking at the front door curiously.

"Not that I was aware of," admitted Harry. "I hope nothing's happened…"

"Finish your dinner, I'll get it," said Ginny decisively. She walked out of the kitchen, Harry watching her go. She walked into the other room, past the fireplace with its flames crackling merrily and its mantle, full of the many pictures that were happily waving at them or playing around of their large family.

Those photographs always put a smile on Harry's face. His children were far from perfect, but to him, they were marvelous. He had just put the last forkful of his dinner into his mouth when he heard Ginny.

"Harry, could you come here, please?"

Sighing, Harry stood up and quickly drank some water before moving into the other room. The sofa, cozy and inviting, made him want to just rest there, but that thought was erased from his mind when he saw who was at the door.

Two beings, identically cloaked in all black dragonskin armor stood there; the coats they wore over the outfits flapped slightly in the wind, revealing more than a few spare holsters for more than just wands. The two carried Muggle weapons as well. What looked like gas masks were on their faces, with red lenses completely covering their eyes. Etched on the upper arm sleeves of the coats was a basic symbol: the earth with various languages that stated I.C.W. around it.

The only difference between the two on his doorstep were their heights of perhaps an inch.

Harry knew who they had to be: Regulators, the Law Enforcement branch of the International Confederation of Wizards. It was extremely difficult to become a Regulator, even more difficult than it was to become an Auror. Harry had worked alongside Regulators before, when British and International issues had been one and the same, most especially after the war. Dementors had still been all over, having bred to form multitudes.

It had been Harry's team of trusted Aurors, those whom had fought at the Battle of Hogwarts with him, and the Regulators who had ended up wrangling the foul creatures in. They had been returned to Azkaban with spells to ensure they could never leave. The prison that had once been there moved to another Unplottable isle; the Ministry no longer associated with Dementors and did not use them to guard their prison.

"Good evening, Mr. Potter," said the taller Regulator. Like all Regulators, it was a disembodied voice with a hollow, mechanical sound to it. Harry knew it was to protect their identities, much like their masks and armor.

"Good evening," said Harry, wondering what could have happened to bring them here. "Come inside, please. Would you like anything to eat or drink?"

Both Regulators shook their heads, but took his invitation to come inside. Harry shared a look with Ginny, who gave a shrug, obviously just as surprised as Harry was.

"The Commander has a request of you, Head Auror," said the taller Regulator without preamble. "He was wondering if you would be so kind as to lend the ICW some of your possessions. In particular, a few notes of importance."

Wondering what he could possibly have that anyone in the ICW, let alone the Director of Law Enforcement would want, Harry spoke, "I'd have to know what the items in question were before agreeing first, of course."

"Of course," said the taller Regulator.

The other Regulator spoke, "They would be items belonging to the Detcro Black."

Strangely now, both Regulators spoke hurriedly, obviously a ritual of sorts, but there was a very real undercurrent of what seemed to be fear mingled with respect even in the disembodied voices. "May his eternal slumber be ever undisturbed."

Harry had absolutely no idea what the Regulator was talking about. A glance towards his wife showed the same confusion, which made Harry a bit relieved; it wasn't something that anyone who had grown up completely in the Wizarding World would know.

"We didn't know a Detcro Black," said Ginny softly, moving towards Harry.

"She's right," agreed Harry. "I knew Sirius Black. He was my godfather."

Sometimes his oldest son reminded him so much of his reckless godfather that Harry could only shake his head. He missed the man even now, but he knew Sirius would be glad that he was alive and had such a wonderful family... even if sometimes the children and work made Harry want to jump out a window.

The two Regulators turned to each other. Harry could not see expressions, of course, but they turned back to him.

"My apologies," explained the shorter Regulator. "Detcro is a title, Mr. Potter. We are seeking information that may be found in the notes of Alphard Black."

"... What exactly is the title for?" asked Harry slowly. He had not known Alphard Black personally, but he knew the name since Sirius had only mentioned two members of his family in a positive light. And those two had been Andromeda Tonks and Alphard Black, his favorite cousin and his uncle.

Alphard had left things to Sirius, who had left them to Harry. It was not hard to see why the ICW would approach Harry for his belongings.

It _was_ hard to see, however, why they would do so after so long. Alphard Black had died long before Harry had been born, after all. So why now? And why would both Regulators still show obvious fear and respect for someone so long gone?

"Detective," said one Regulator as the other said, "Necromancer," simultaneously.

"Okay, you both just gave me two different titles," said Harry, frowning.

Ginny, on the other hand, looked surprised, "Necromancers can be detectives?"

"Only in very extreme cases, madam," explained one of the Regulators. "When we have no other trails. They are very proficient and many also conduct private investigations."

"I won't make any promises," said Harry, thinking on the matter. "Do you know what your Commander is hoping to gain from the notes, presuming Sirius didn't toss them like he did all his other family things?"

Harry tried to think of what he knew of Head of the ICW's Law Enforcement. Commander Timothy Gagnon was a man who seemed carved from stone. He was from the Yukon, dark, short and thin, with hair that had long turned white and dark brown eyes that seemed to burn holes when anyone held his gaze too long. It was Gagnon who had given authorization for the assistance against the Dementors and though Harry knew little about the man, he respected him.

He also had a strong suspicion that Sirius would not toss anything his uncle, one of only two relatives he liked, had left him. But Harry wanted to look through these things first before turning them over to any other law enforcement agency.

"Intel states that the Detcro is believed to have the last known whereabouts of a powerful but extremely dangerous artifact," explained a Regulator. "The Commander seeks to ensure the object is found and placed in a safe, secure location."

Harry nodded, not voicing his question; why had it taken roughly forty years for anyone to want this artifact? If they had waited this long, surely his few days of looking into the notes would not hurt.

"I'll let you know what I find," said Harry.

"Thank you." With that, the two Regulators bowed their heads politely and Harry walked them to the door. Once they had walked off far enough into the cold night, they Apparated.

Closing the door, Harry looked at Ginny.

"Why wait so long?" he asked, frowning.

Ginny was frowning too, "The only things I can think of is they need it for something, but the Regulators just said it was dangerous so that's doubtful. Maybe…" she looked nervous and Harry walked to her. She sighed and looked at him, "You'll laugh and tell me I'm channeling Moody."

"Just don't shout 'Constant Vigilance,' or lecture me about how I might lose a buttock," said Harry, unable to hide a smile.

"Wait, what about your buttocks?" Ginny grinned deviously. "Moody enjoyed the view too?"

"No!" said Harry, making her laugh. "But what is it? What's wrong?"

"... Maybe they waited so long because they wanted to be sure nobody that knew him, _really_ knew him, was still alive," suggested Ginny quietly. "Did Sirius ever mention him?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah. Alphard was his uncle who left him some stuff. He was disowned for it."

"Do you have any idea where to look?"

Ginny looked around their living room, as if half-expecting to see something there.

"Yeah. I'm going to check Sirius's room after work tomorrow," said Harry decisively. He hated going to Grimmauld Place but he had kept it instead of selling it because of the memories and because it could be useful one day. It had served him well in the war, after all.

"I'll make sure that your supper stays warm then," said Ginny, smiling at him.

"Thanks," said Harry, going upstairs with her to retire for the night.

Work the next day was busy as always, and the quiet of Grimmauld Place was a welcome reprieve after the hectic day. Not much had changed since he had stayed here during the height of the war with Ron and Hermione. It was cleaner, at least, but still gave Harry a sense of foreboding and sadness.

Harry continued up the stairs until he reached the topmost landing where there were only two doors. The one facing him bore a nameplate reading Sirius. He entered, looking around the room with amusement. Posters of motorcycles and bikini-clad Muggle girls and the photograph of the Marauders surrounded him.

He walked towards the bookshelves; he had never really looked at the books on it, but on the top shelf was a slim, black leather-bound book, perhaps as thick as Harry's hand. Next to it was a neat pile of parchment that had Sirius's handwriting on it.

 _Things that save me from boredom-induced death:_

 _Feeding Buckbeak_

 _Seeing other people_

 _Harry_

 _Uncle's notes_

Harry found himself softly chuckling. He could practically hear Sirius venting and he looked through the parchment. There were maps and names and what looked like strange phrases.

Curious, Harry opened the book, flipping through it, but finding nothing. He shrugged and went back to the very first page, flipping so quickly that he gave himself a papercut.

"Ouch!" He yelped, jerking his hand away and shaking his head as a drop of blood sunk into the first page. He had just healed his small, annoying injury when he frowned.

Words, in a far neater handwriting than Sirius's, had appeared on the page.

 _Sirius,_

 _If you are reading this, then I am no longer around. Be of good cheer; Death is an old friend and from all I've been told, it's even easier than falling asleep._

 _But not all methods of death allow for such peace. And I have found something in one of my cases that I fear may swing various balances that are already fragile._

 _I have also written this as a precaution. I believe the ICW has been tainted from the inside. I fear it is as corrupt as the Ministry, if not more so. And if that is the case, then this book absolutely cannot ever be allowed to reach them or the Ministry. Burn it if you must, if it ever comes down to it, but do not turn it to them._

 _My cases are logged in here, both ICW and personal. Hopefully, information in them will help you one day._

 _Take care of yourself, little star._

 _Your Uncle,_

 _Alphard_

Harry frowned and looked through the book. He expected to see words but instead he simply saw boxes with dates written over them. His stomach plummeted uncomfortably; this reminded him very much of a certain diary he had never wanted to think about again. Slowly, holding the book, he sat on the bed.

He was not a child and this was not Voldemort's horcrux. Sirius would never have kept a book that would harm himself or anyone in the Order.

Reassured, Harry raised the book to press his eye against the little box and as he expected, he was tilting forward; the window was widening, he felt his body leave the bed, and he was pitched headfirst through the opening in the page, into a whirl of color and shadow.


	2. Chapter 2

As Harry felt his feet hit solid ground, he heard something clacking, a guitar playing and the light tapping of drums. It was a very upbeat, instrumental song that he was sure he had heard the few times his father-in-law Arthur had managed to have control over the music.

He looked around as the blurred shapes came into focus. A handsome man was sitting at a desk, the source of the clacking being an old-fashioned metal typewriter completely etched with runes that the man was using. Needless to say, Harry made a mental note to invest in one of those for himself. It certainly would make his reports far neater.

Taking in a good look at the man behind the desk, Harry gasped despite himself, thinking for a moment he was looking at Sirius; the man was tall, well-built, and handsome with fair skin and lustrous black hair streaked very slightly with grey. Harry moved to look closer at the man behind the desk and his eyes widened.

Well, one notable difference between his godfather and the man behind the desk was the notable circle of crimson around his iris. But it wasn't horrible like Voldemort's had been; these seemed far more natural, blending in with the man's striking gray eyes. Harry was also surprised that the man was wearing a classic dark gray Muggle three-piece suit, though the jacket wasn't on and the tie was loosened. Steam rose from an ignored cup of tea next to the typewriter.

" _Oh she's got a hold on me,  
_ _Worse than any other magic can be…"_

Ignoring the empty chairs on the other side of the desk, Harry found the source of the music: a Wizarding Wireless radio on a shelf on the vertically striped green-and-beige wall next to a camera and under another shelf with books. In some places the paper had peeled a little bit, but it gave the large office a more lived-in, strangely cozy feel.

To the right of the shelf was a portrait, but Harry ignored it for a moment, for to the left of the shelves were certificates. Curious, he went to look at them.

 _License for International Criminal Investigations._

His eyes went to the next one.

 _Official Dark Arts Practitioner, Class A Authorization._

This made Harry lift both eyebrows; ODAPs were rare, usually reserved for Unspeakables due to their research and even they were only Classes B or C. He had never met anyone with a Class A Authorization.

Under the shelves was a comfortable looking leather sofa that had a dark gray fedora and same color trenchcoat strewn over it.

" _I was left with a hairy heart,  
_ _But she trimmed it down and made it give a start…"_

Looking to the right of the shelves towards the portrait made Harry shake his head. Of course. Alphard _Black_ ; why wouldn't he have a portrait of Phineas Nigellus Black? The clever looking wizard seemed to be moving between portraits, leaving an empty canvas and returning every so often as if to check on the office before leaving once more.

Under the portrait were metal file cabinets that had a magical globe and more books stacked on top of it; to the left of these, between the sofa and said file cabinets were boxes full of different papers. Harry continued to look around; the large window behind the desk had the blinds halfway up, allowing sunlight into the office and glittering slightly off the gleaming light wooden floor. Next to the window were more filing cabinets with a desk fan, books and photographs atop of it. Over this was a bulletin board with various news articles, charts and photographs pinned to it, with a red ribbon pinned to the wall connecting some of them.

He glanced towards the other wall that held a larger bookshelf that was obviously enchanted to hold more, and more boxes with files and papers were on the floor. The last wall only had a wooden door with a misted glass window with a clock above it and a coat stand next to it.

Harry turned his attention back to the photographs; he could see one of Sirius and Regulus both looking as if they hadn't wanted to take a picture and there was another photo of a much younger Bellatrix Lestrange with Narcissa Malfoy and Andromeda Tonks, the three girls grinning broadly and waving. Another photograph showed an older man that looked much like Alphard and Sirius as well, with a very pretty young woman that Harry didn't know as well as someone that looked surprisingly very much like Harry himself.

A glance towards the bulletin board made him raise an eyebrow as he looked at the articles.

 _Girl Dead at Hogwarts_. The red line tied it to a deceased notice: _Madam Hepzibah Smith_.

Harry knew the tie instantly: Voldemort. He found himself turning to look at Alphard Black as a knock sounded on the door and made the man look up with a puzzled look.

"Come in," said Alphard, flicking his wand and turning off the Wireless. Harry felt he had a very pleasant, professional voice.

The door opened to reveal a woman of such breathtaking beauty that Harry knew she had to be part-Veela. She was tall and willowy with long silvery-blonde hair pulled up into a loose bun, large, deep blue eyes, fair skin and very white, even teeth. She wore light blue robes with gold trimming and she swept into the room, her hands trembling and her eyes brimming with tears.

He glanced towards Alphard, who did not seem affected by the woman's beauty one bit; instead the man seemed to be looking towards her hands. He gave a strange slight nod before saying, "Please take a seat," and indicating the chair.

The woman did so and Alphard conjured a handkerchief, handing it to her.

"Thank you," She looked at Alphard more clearly.

"Would you like some tea?" asked Alphard. He didn't seem surprised when the woman shook her head. "Well, please introduce yourself and tell me how I might be able to help you."

The woman took a few deep breaths before finally speaking, "I am Todorka Stoyanov and I haff come to you because I…" she wiped at her eyes with the handkerchief again and continued, "My daughter… she… she is missing. We did tracking spells but they did not lead us to her."

Alphard nodded, looking intently at the woman, but Harry could see the sympathy on his face. "How old is she? What is her name?"

"Fourteen," said Todorka, reaching into her robes and pulling out a magical photograph. The girl in the photograph was as beautiful as her mother, smiling proudly and waving before she grabbed a broomstick to fly around. "Her name is Silva and she loves to fly. She vants to play Quidditch. She vos flying and… and never came home…" the woman looked ready to cry once more. "My husband is vith the ICW Tracking Unit but they haff found nothing. It vos one of them that gave your information."

"Do you have anything of hers that was held dear? Something sentimental?"

In response, Todorka pulled out a lovely ebony wand. "This is her vand."

Alphard nodded and gingerly took the wand with a handkerchief, laying it on his desk. Harry noticed that the man didn't go for his wand, instead waving his hand over the girl's wand, in circles. Harry watched as the air seemed to somehow ripple around his hand, the Auror raising an eyebrow. He had never seen a spell like this and, judging from the look on Todorka's face, neither had she.

Soft crackling, like electric shocks, sounded through the office and a bluish-white neon light seemed to be following Alphard's hand. Harry could feel the undercurrent of raw magical energy and he had his wand in his hand before realizing how foolish his action was.

And then they heard sobbing, soft, quiet cries and sniffles, by someone that sounded desperately as if they were trying to stop. It started with one but it was joined by another and another and another… soon the office was full of the sound, of strange grunting and shouting that couldn't quite be made out.

Alphard clenched his hand into a fist and the light, along with the sound, died.

"Vot vas that?" asked Todorka, echoing Harry's thoughts.

"A variation of conjuration," said Alphard, looking grim. "Good news is, your daughter is definitely alive. Bad news is wherever she is, she's not alone and it's not a nice place, going by all that crying we heard."

Horror was a mild way to describe the look on Todorka's face. Harry could completely emphasize; he was a father, after all.

"I vill pay any fee. Just find her, please."

Alphard nodded, opened his desk drawer and Harry could see a few things. He couldn't control his roar of laughter; he could recognize, even though it did not have the Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes logo, the small satchel of Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder within the drawer. Alphard grabbed this and some other small satchels as well as a pair of smoked spectacles. He glanced towards the sofa, catching his trenchcoat and hat that had flown towards him. Harry could see a glimmer of silver within the sleeves and he wondered what the detective carried with him.

There was no time to ponder, though; Alphard had closed the drawer and looked at Todorka. "Would you please bring me to the ICW tracking unit that's assisting you?"

The woman nodded and the two left the office, Harry right behind them. They entered a small vestibule area before heading outside. He did a double take, looking around with slight surprise; he knew this area. He had passed it when he had come to Grimmauld Place from work. It was surprisingly close to the house, tucked into an unassuming area that Harry had just presumed was part of the nearby flats. He looked closer and realized Muggles didn't see the black iron door with neat gold numbers etched into it.

And then the world spun around him; the memory was Apparating and instead of being in a bustling city, they were in a quiet forest.

It would have been quiet, rather, if people hadn't been speaking.

"Vot do you mean no sign?! How can ve haff come all the vay to this country only to be stopped now?! Supreme Mugwump, you must haff some idea vere my daughter is!"

Harry heard a soft, tired sigh. "Ambassador Stoyanov-"

"I vant her found!" The short man with graying hair was gesturing angrily.

As they turned the bend, Harry could see exhausted looking ICW witches and wizards trying different spells and getting either no responses or their wands constantly turning in circles. One wizard sat in front of a bowl full of water but it was covered by gray mist; scrying was not working either.

The wizard trying to calm the ambassador, however, was familiar to Harry. He was tall and thin with long sweeping auburn hair and a beard; a much younger Albus Dumbledore.

"Gavril, I am sure they are trying their best," said Todorka, making the man turn with surprise. The others looked up and Harry saw the uncomfortable glances the tracking unit members all shared.

"D-Detcro," said the one who had been attempting scrying, standing up immediately.

"Alphard," said Dumbledore, surprising Harry by looking almost relieved, unlike everyone else. "I am glad you have taken the case."

"Missing child, I shouldn't be surprised you'd investigate. It is close enough to Hogwarts to be concerning."

"None of the creatures in the forest would take a child," said Dumbledore immediately. Harry scoffed, thinking about how Aragog's family had wanted to eat him and Ron; they had gone into the forest, yes, but those creatures hadn't minded taken them for a meal if they could have!

Alphard nodded and turned back to Gavril Stoyanov, "Your daughter is alive. I discovered that much from her wand's tie to her. And I assure you, she will be found. Just please be patient, Ambassador."

"You got a Dark Wizard?!" Gavril looked at his wife, eyes wide, beside himself, looking towards an awkward looking member of the tracking unit. "You vould send us to a Dark-!"

Her eyes flashed dangerously and her fingers seemed to become suspiciously longer, sharper, her face more rage-filled and bird-like. "I vill go to anyone, _anyone,_ that can find our little girl!"

The entire group was silent, sharing looks after that outburst.

Alphard simply nodded farewell and began to walk off; Harry suspected he was going to Apparate.

"Half a moment, Alphard."

It was Dumbledore. Both Alphard and Harry paused. "What is it?" asked Alphard, looking curious. "I believe you when you say a creature here wouldn't take her."

"I want to accompany you." The man held up a hand before Alphard could protest, "If a missing child has truly ended up in this country, then as Supreme Mugwump, I have to see how such a thing could occur. That means someone has breached international wards."

"... So long as you do not lecture me about some of my methods."

The man nodded, though he did not look overly pleased.

Alphard turned around once more and continued walking before stopping in a relatively small clearing. He bent down over a stump and placed the girl's wand on it, using the same technique he had in the office. Harry was surprised though; there was no sound and the light was very faint. Fear rose in him; was that a sign about the girl?

"She's closer to my office in London than she is to here," said Alphard, frowning.

"What did you do?" asked Dumbledore.

Alphard gave him a strange look, "I used the connection that forms between wizard and wand. The energy readings are too faint to trace properly, but I can get a general idea when I use it with... other amplifying measures."

"Amplifying-Alphard, did you just tap into the ley lines?!"

"Didn't I _just_ say you could accompany me _so long as you do not lecture me about some of my methods?_ "

Harry frowned, thinking. He had only heard vaguely of ley lines, that they were old trade routes. But judging by Dumbledore's reaction and the fact that Alphard had said he had used them as other amplifying measures, they were obviously far more than that.

"I am not lecturing. I am just alarmed by your actions."

"... If it'll save that little girl, I'll worry about the consequences later. If you had been in the office, if you had heard her crying…" Alphard fell silent before saying, in a strangely gritted voice, "There was more than one person crying."

Dumbledore stilled, staring at Alphard with even more shock than he had over the spell. "More than one child has been taken?" His voice was soft and appalled.

"As I said, I'll worry about the consequences later. First we're going back to my office to make sure we don't stand out."

"Don't stand out?" echoed Dumbledore.

Alphard gave a devious smile, "Why Headmaster, I thought you would enjoy the chance to dress up."

"I am very suspicious of that smile," said Dumbledore, eyes twinkling even as his voice sounded slightly concerned. Harry wondered what Alphard was up to as the two men Apparated. The sensation had him follow Alphard, to no surprise, and soon they were back in the office.

"Wouldn't transfiguration charms suffice?" asked Dumbledore as they walked into the office. Harry saw Alphard take off his hat and coat, hanging them on the stand and going right to his desk to another drawer.

"No. With the resources that are being expended to block so many variations of tracking, there will no doubt be a number of defensive enchantments." Alphard looked up at Dumbledore, "And if people are allowed in, there has to be a way to confirm they are not threats. My money's on something like the Thief's Downfall being in use."

"But that gets rid of concealments," said Dumbledore.

Alphard smirked, " _Magical_ concealments like potions and spells yes. But it does not get rid of costumes, of makeup. Typical arrogance in thinking that there are no other ways to conceal yourself besides magical ones."

Harry knew that Alphard did not know he was there, listening to this, but he felt himself turning red. They had increased defensive enchantments in many places and to his own horror, he realized that in the decades since Alphard had first said this, nothing had changed.

He was going to have to start taking notes. First a typewriter and next to check with Research and Development for ways to reveal _all_ subterfuge.

As Harry watched, Alphard expertly put on contact lenses that changed his very distinct eyes to a more plain brown and he put on what looked like a wig but it seemed quite natural. A makeup that Harry had never seen before was dusting it self onto the man with a brush as he pursued the drawer, frowning.

"Dumbledore, we have to do something about that beard."

"What's wrong with my beard?!"

"How are we supposed to have you blend in with that? Even if you wear a hood, taking it off would reveal it…"

Dumbledore gave a dangerous look, "I am not shaving."

"I think I have an idea…"

As Harry watched, Alphard grabbed the beard and rolled it up, using some strange adhesive from his desk before continuing. It took a long time but Harry grinned at the final product of a very rotund Albus Dumbledore who looked nothing like himself; his half-moon spectacles and light blue eyes were gone, replaced with brown eyes and no glasses, his hair hidden under a wig beard under what seemed to be very itchy material.

"I can't even walk properly like this," said Dumbledore, and indeed, he was waddling behind Alphard, who had put on wizard robes over his outfit.

"Well, that will definitely show we have no intentions of running."

The man glowered, "You do not even know where to begin."

"Of course I do." Alphard looked grim. "One of the only places in the world completely untouched by the sun so that it is always dark, always unseen, where you can get anything and no one asks questions because no one cares." The detective, at that moment, seemed to be looking right at Harry as he said, "Knockturn Alley."


	3. Chapter 3

The two men left the office and Harry followed.

They moved through the streets of London, different from the ones Harry knew and yet somehow the same in many ways. He didn't recognize the pub they entered though; it was not The Leaky Cauldron, but The White Wyvern. The interior of this pub looked as if it wouldn't pass any health inspections, to say the least. Harry glanced briefly at the various beings hunched over splintered tables but Alphard strode out without looking around.

Soon, they were in the familiar, narrow, dark alleyway. Harry was quite stunned; in decades, Knockturn Alley had not changed at all. It made him wonder what Alphard was expecting, since all he saw were the same shops that peddled the same goods: Dark items but not illegal. Highly questionable, yes, but not illegal to own. He could see Dumbledore looking around as well, frowning, but Alphard was not looking around.

Instead the man had gone to the street sign that Harry had noticed the first time he had been in Knockturn Alley, a very old, weathered sign even in this time. While Dumbledore was looking suspiciously at a being that looked very much like a Hag munching on a hand, Harry watched Alphard, who had taken out his wand and was dragging it over the letters in the sign.

Over the T in _Knockturn_ and the R in the word as well as the U, but, still dragging his wand quickly, Alphard then dragged it all the way to the E in _Alley_ before circling around and returning to the _E_ and then to the N, the T…

With surprise, Harry realized the detective was quickly _spelling_ something. He continued to watch the letters and movements until he realized what Alphard must be spelling: _true entrance_.

There was a strange yet mighty creak, reminding Harry of a door that desperately needed its hinges oiled, and a massive black oak door appeared in a wall that had only been stone before, directly behind the sign. Dumbledore had turned at the loud creak, looking curious when Alphard walked towards the new door.

"What store is this?" muttered Dumbledore, frowning.

Alphard glanced at him, "It's the way into the Marketplace. Come on."

He opened the door. A dimly-lit brick tunnel that stood about ten feet tall and slightly less wide greeted them. A flaming torch mounted in the wall sputtered as they entered and the door slammed closed behind them. Alphard led the way, with Dumbledore looking as uncomfortable as Harry felt. The flaming torches were set very far apart and not very useful They eventually reached an old fashioned lift that seemed quite unstable and had no buttons to press. When they had clambered aboard, Alphard muttered, "Hold tight."

Dumbledore gave him a strange look as the detective gripped a bar so rusted that Harry worried he would get tetanus. At that point, the lift seemed to just drop. Harry knew it was a memory but he found himself gripping the bar tightly, Dumbledore doing the same, his eyes wide as the wind whistled past them and sparks flew. Harry's heart raced and then, after what seemed to be ages, the lift stopped. Dumbledore looked quite green as he followed Alphard and Harry followed.

There were various sorts of stalls and vendors as far as the eye could see. Some had signs that reminded Harry very much of neon lights, others had no such sign at all. A mixture of scents hit Harry like a wave; some were delicious, making him very hungry, while others made him want to wretch and others made him really think twice about if he wanted to be there.

Dumbledore looked around, eyebrows raised. "I have to admit, you surprise me."

Alphard gave a soft chuckle but there wasn't much mirth in it as he said, reminding Harry very much of the Regulators who had both chanted incantations immediately, "There is always another level."

For some reason, given the wariness in the words and the tone, Harry had a suspicion he wasn't just speaking of the market he had brought them to, though it applied.

Indeed, Dumbledore was nodding, looking somber, "There is. But you are strong." He gave a slight smile, "If anyone knows how far to stretch the tether but not break it, it will be you."

"You compliment me. If it weren't so dark, you would see I'm blushing." Alphard straightened up and began to walk, Dumbledore behind him, until he stopped suddenly, hissing and clutching at his robe.

"What is it?" asked Dumbledore instantly, looking on guard.

"Her wand." Alphard winced, "Temperamental one. It… it used the connection back. Painfully." He frowned.

"A threat from the captors, do you think?" murmured Dumbledore, eyes flashing.

Slowly, Alphard shook his head. "No. More… the sensation is more… as if it's saying to… hurry." He and Dumbledore shared looks and continued with a definite hastiness in their step that hadn't been there before. "If the wand's able to replicate the connection with such power, she's got to be close."

"Your hunch was right."

"I didn't think she would be here, I just came for an informant. What the hell would a kidnapped kid be here for?" Alphard glanced at the man, "I don't think I've ever seen a kid here before, honestly."

Harry really didn't like the sound of that. Neither, it seemed, did Dumbledore.

"I suspect that we may find out and the reason will be most unpleasant."

They turned abruptly, Alphard walking towards the wall and looking over the bricks before tapping one, which began to wriggle and soon, the bricks moved aside to reveal another lift.

"Oh no," said Dumbledore, already looking green.

"Always another level," said Alphard in an almost chipper way. "Age before beauty. After you."

Dumbledore sighed and entered the lift, grabbing the bar for dear life, Harry following suit and Alphard entered, not bothering to grab anything. Harry soon saw why; this particular ride was far shorter than the previous one, though in the lift Alphard took out the girl's wand and muttered a tracking spell.

To Harry's surprise, it seemed to be fighting to point, which was more of a response than the tracking unit had gotten.

"Protection's really strong," muttered Alphard, frowning. "I don't think I've gone that deep into the Market to see such strong wards."

"That really doesn't bode well," Dumbledore said, looking sad. "How far have you gone?"

"To the thirteenth," said Alphard, frowning. "I needed a fragment of a soul. Long story."

Dumbledore was staring at him, echoing Harry's thoughts. "... You need a murder to split a soul…"

"Well, that'd be why what I sought was so far below," said Alphard matter-of-factly. "Don't give me that look, it was necessary."

"For what?"

"Ah, we're here." Alphard quickly strode out of the lift, Dumbledore frowning as he followed the other man. Harry had to admit, he was curious as well. This level seemed to have many more poisons and, Harry noticed, far less food smells.

They had reached another lift and another level of this Market. This one seemed to have weapons of all sorts, even Muggle ones.

Harry frowned at some of them; at least he could see where some criminals seemed to get the more powerful weapons that kept Aurors in St. Mungo's for a long time due to the powerful and obscure curses on them. He had wondered but presumed that they had made them or had them imported somehow.

As they went further and further, the things were more and more obscure and Harry's spine was constantly crawling. There was something about the atmosphere that was just… wrong down here.

Dumbledore had paused on the tenth level, looking at a Tyrannosaurus Rex skull that had a sign next to it proudly displaying _"Freshly Dug from Mongolia."_

"I may not know much about dinosaurs but I think that skull is mislabeled. Tyrannosaurus was from North America, not Asia..."

Alphard gave it the briefest of glances. "... It's one of its relatives. We're here to find a girl, not to correct store labels. Stop dawdling."

Dumbledore made a face but followed after the detective.

It was as they were heading towards the fifteenth level that the lift stopped halfway. Before either Alphard or Dumbledore could react, the lift was practically flooded before the water Vanished.

"What was that?" sputtered Dumbledore, frowning and looking at himself. Harry was surprised both of them were quite dry. He had seen the water.

"Variation of the downfall," muttered Alphard, sighing slightly in obvious relief, since it had not cast off their disguises. The lift's doors opened and Harry saw why more precautions were here.

The first thing that caught his eye was a strange orange-looking thing. It seemed to be a torus structured thing, about nine feet tall and though it was obviously not activated, Harry felt a strong power within the item, but other things caught his eye. Something was suspended in midair, a bee, not moving at all.

Another thing that made Harry nearly scream in frustration was an egg that would hatch, grow into a chicken only to die and return to an egg.

Time.

This level dealt with illegal Time Magic artifacts. If this Marketplace still existed… How could they _ever_ stop it?

He noticed Alphard pausing for a brief moment to look at something in a stall but the man continued walking. Each level held something more grim.

Blood magic was on the one below; daggers that allowed bloodletting, rage magic… the floor under it held…

Harry felt sickened. He felt as if he should get every animal rights group in the world and release them here. The stench was horrible. Blood and feces and the _cages…_

Row upon row of cages where animal, magical and not, were kept. Harry could see signs of rituals that the bones or blood or fur or any other part of the animal could be.

One stall even had a unicorn. Harry could see the runes binding it there on the floor and burned into the beautiful creature's pure white skin. It made him retch and he saw even Dumbledore staring with horror at the conditions these animals were in.

"We're here for the girl," reminded Alphard, his voice tight as they walked past.

The next level had Harry blushing; the emphasis was obviously on tantra and other variations of magic with that. Or perhaps just the views… he was glad neither Alphard nor Dumbledore lingered. And yet, as he passed many of the stalls, on many of the workers' necks, Harry swore he saw collars etched with runes and none of the workers seemed to want to be there…

It was on the lift that another ward was activated, ensuring no magical disguises were being used. Alphard pulled out the girl's wand once more and said _"Point me."_

Immediately, the wand obeyed.

Harry knew what it meant, and so did the other two men judging by their shared looks: Silva was here.

When the lift opened, however, Harry wished they were back on the level with the animals. Because on _this_ level, they had _beings_ in those conditions.

Everywhere Harry looked, there were beings bound and gagged. Some had been horribly abused; he could see someone coldly shaving a Veela bald, placing the hair in a basket. Another had goblins working at a smelt, making things. They were all bound together with seamless chains that seemed to be made of light.

Harry felt his stomach churn. Dumbledore had put his hand over his mouth while Alphard just stared. Though his face had no expression, somehow Harry was sure he was in shock.

"Lot seventy-four!" shouted a voice over the din.

They went towards the sound of the voice and Harry felt even sicker.

An auction and all of the ones for bid… were children.

"We have to stop this." Alphard's voice was cold and in that moment, Harry knew that he would have gotten along well with this man.

"I agree." Dumbledore looked just as dangerous.

"I'm getting the girl first. Do an untraceable tracking spell on anyone that buys someone. We'll grab them then."

It was strange seeing Dumbledore being given orders; more strange to see the man nod and obey them.

" _Point me."_ Alphard muttered it, using his own wand now. It pointed now and Harry could see a very scared, beautiful girl in the lots to be sold. She, like all of the children, sobbed quietly and looked afraid.

He knew why they had been crying when Alphard had seen if she were still alive now.

She was lot number 117. Alphard made a bid, countering a man with hungry watery blue eyes that seemed to be licking his lips as he looked over the girl.

For 800 Galleons, she was Alphard's.

Harry felt disgusted. Not even a thousand… these children's lives had been destroyed. Families shattered and for what? A meager profit? It was disgusting on so many levels that the man wanted to vomit.

Like the other buyers, Alphard sharply hit the girl, snarling at her to be silent when she served him. Looking fearful the girl valiantly refrained from making a sound but her eyes leaked tears.

They left the auction area and Apparated back to Alphard's office.

Immediately, he turned to Silva, sitting her on the couch, and waved his wand over where he had hit her. "My apologies. We had to make it look realistic."

The girl stared at him, uncomprehending.

"I am Detcro Alphard Black," said Alphard quietly. "This is Professor Albus Dumbledore. We're working with your parents."

The girl stared at them.

"I know you've been through a horrible ordeal," said Alphard softly. "And I am going to bring you to your parents as soon as possible. But I need to know how this happened. How you ended up there."

Perhaps the girl was still in shock, for she said nothing.

Dumbledore spoke quietly, flicking his wand to be rid of his disguise. "Alphard, I think we might want to get her parents."

Sighing and following suit, removing his disguise, Alphard simply nodded, slumping into his chair.

"It vos the Regulator."

The girl's voice was unnaturally loud in the silent office and both men turned, staring at her. Harry gaped.

"What?" whispered Dumbledore, his blue eyes very wide.

Her eyes welled with tears. "A Regulator… I vos told to go vith them. That Father vos going to bring me vith him. I haff gone vith him sometimes… And the Regulator took me… to a… to a room… where a voman said… I vould… I vould fetch a good price in… in the Market…."

"What did this woman look like?" asked Alphard, getting up from his seat to kneel in front of the girl. "Did you see her?"

Silva shuddered, tears brimming. "The Regulator brought me to the… the… vaiting area…"

"Were other children there when the Regulator took you?"

She continued to shudder as she replied." _Da._ A portkey. Someone tried to not touch it and… and the Regulator broke his arm… fixed it and broke it again before fixing it to make sure the lesson stayed."

The disgust on both men's faces had to be mirrored by Harry's.

"A Regulator." Dumbledore's voice sounded deadened.

"At least one," said Alphard quietly. "Maybe more than one given how many were there…" He looked at Silva. "Thank you. You were very brave. I'm going to give you a potion so you can sleep with no bad dreams and when you wake up, your parents will be here. I promise."

He went to his desk and took out a phial of what Harry knew had to be Dreamless Sleep Potion. The girl took it and was soon sleeping soundly.

"Now what?" muttered Dumbledore, looking more tired than he had that morning.

Alphard drummed his fingers on the desk, "We track down the people you put tracers on. You're the Supreme Mugwump. You can authorize me to go on investigations."

Dumbledore gave a slow smile with no humor in it, "Given that right now everyone in Law Enforcement is suspect since identities are unknown, I'll no doubt be doing that. And then?"

"We get those children and then I'm going back down to that level since I can get there now." Alphard gave a horrific smile, one that made Harry see exactly why people feared the man as a Dark Arts user. "And I will make sure those beings are freed one way or another."

Dumbledore stared at the savage, Dark expression on Alphard's face, his own face completely neutral. When he spoke, his voice was level. "I'm working with you on this case, Alphard. Until the end."

Alphard stared at him, an almost haughty, cold expression on his face for a few seconds before he was back to what Harry knew to be his normal self. "I would... appreciate the assistance. Thank you." He sighed, "I need to contact the Stoyanovs." He looked tired, "At least this case… is closed."

The scene whirled, darkness completely overwhelmed his vision; Harry felt himself falling and, with a crash, he landed on Sirius's bed, Alphard's casebook laying open on his stomach.

It was, to Harry's surprise, late evening. He pocketed the book, thinking furiously of what he had just learned.

A few decades ago there had been at least one rogue Regulator. He stood slowly, feeling very tired. Though what he had seen was very interesting, it did not explain why the ICW would want Alphard's records now.

Though it would be slim odds, Harry wondered if the man's office was still around. It wasn't a far walk, after all. He had taken a few steps before pausing. A strange thought occurred to him, reminding him of the war.

 _Tracking spells. ICW interest._

Certainly the ICW wouldn't authorizing tracking spells on him, the Head Auror… would they?

Harry decided to do scanning spells anyway; he could hear Moody having a fit at his having a suspicion and not even checking on it. The first few showed nothing and Harry would have stopped at the basics if not for his internal Moody lecturing him.

The more difficult scan, however, showed something.

Harry felt his stomach drop before it was replaced with a rare fury. How _dare_ they. He went to break the tracking spell before a devious thought occurred to him and he smirked.

Instead of breaking the tracking spell, Harry instead transferred it to a small quill in Sirius's room. Shrinking it even more, he walked to the nearest bathroom and flushed the now tracked quill down the toilet. Let the ICW follow it through the sewers.

Running the gamut of spells he knew revealed six levels of tracking spells. Harry got rid of them all by transferring them away. A few he transferred to the animals running around in the square outside; it would no doubt confuse them, having six different leads.

That done, Harry thought a moment before Disillusioning himself as well as putting on a few Notice-Me-Not charms for good measure and left Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place, heading for where he knew Alphard's office had been.

He stared at the door a few short minutes later before touching it. A blue spark jumped from the door to his hand and Harry had just yelped, "Ouch!" when it swung open.

Surprised, Harry entered and the door shut behind him.

The office, though very similar to what he had seen in the case, had some differences. The first one being a massive fish tank with two koi fish. Harry blinked as the fish seemed to duck behind the little decorations in their tank, hiding from him.

How were they still alive?

As if in answer to his question, Harry saw a can of fish food lift itself and begin to sprinkle flakes into the fish tank. He could see runes etched into the can and he suspected a refill charm was in the runes, as well as the command to feed them. There were also runes on the fish tank, no doubt to keep it filled and clean. Harry looked around more.

There were more books but what caught Harry's eye most were papers on the desk.

 _Dear Sirius,_

 _Thanks for your last letter. That bird was enormous; it could hardly get through my window._

 _Things are the same as usual here. Dudley's diet isn't going too well. My aunt found him smuggling doughnuts into his room yesterday..._

Heart pounding, Harry turned his attention to another one.

 _Dear Sirius,_

 _I did it! I survived the dragon, you won't believe how I did it! Thank you so much for the Firebolt! My heart was pounding and I summoned it and heard it whizzing behind me. It was like a massive Bludger..._

These were his letters. These were all letters he, Harry, had written to Sirius. His godfather must have come here; perhaps when he had been on the run. Or perhaps his sneaking here was why Dumbledore had been so adamant about him _staying inside._

He touched the letters. Sirius had kept them. Every single letter Harry had written to him was here in a neat little pile, all so folded and re-folded that the creases were part of the parchment, the words long faded. Harry left them on the desk, looking towards the typewriter. He opened the drawers and found that Alphard's belongings were still there. The instant darkness powder as well as the disguises, potions, a strange long white splinter the size of a toothpick but would not break and it glimmered and shone.

Curious, Harry decided to pocket the object and have it analyzed.

He also noticed a few weapons, including an old-fashioned Muggle revolver, though it also had runes etched all over it and a curved blade that seemed to be made of something like a bone or a large tooth.

Harry left the weapons alone but took note of the inventory of healing objects and disguises and other miscellaneous things. He had to admit, he was inspired to alter the Auror standard kit. Finally, he looked towards the books.

There were a surprisingly large number of books about the Dark Arts, many highly illegal. Harry glanced towards the certificates on the wall. Perhaps they weren't illegal for a Class A Dark User. There were more than a few books about healing and Potions and disguises and wandlore… history books and atlases and all kinds of other books.

He looked through a few case files, seeing photographs of scenes and of people and things… Alphard was a popular investigator, it seemed, though Harry wondered why the ICW tracking unit had been so wary of him given this fact.

Then again, if someone steeped in the Dark Arts was to lend them a hand in a case… it made Harry think of how the Ministry had used to work with Dementors. The disgust made him shudder and he wondered if the ICW felt that way about the Detcro.

He took some of the books with him before Apparating home, his stomach growling quite loudly. Ginny was listening to a programme on the Wireless when he walked in and she smiled, seeing the books in his hands.

"If Hermione sees those, she's going to dance for joy thinking she's finally influencing you a bit."

"I read a little bit," protested Harry, grinning. "The Daily Prophet, the Quibbler, letters, those Mad Muggle comics…"

His wife just shook her head, "Only you would think that's reading."

Harry grinned and left her to her programme, entering the kitchen. True to her word, Ginny had kept his food nice and warm. He breathed in the rich scent of the meaty tomato sauce over the wide ribbons of pappardelle pasta with fresh bread next to it and his stomach growled once more. Needing no further encouragement, Harry sat down to eat, spreading butter over a slice of the bread.

"This is delicious!" he called to Ginny.

"You're just hungry," she said, and Harry could practically see the cheeky grin that had to be on her face. "But thank you."

"Did anything today?"

"Just work. Managed to not punch Rita Skeeter in the face today. I feel like locking her in a jar like Hermione did," said Ginny as Harry, now quite full, left the kitchen to sit with her. "You? Going from these books…"

Harry was about to answer when he paused, frowning.

When Ginny had just been his best friend's sister she had been targeted too. She was his wife now; would they be following her too?

"Harry?" she asked, noticing his frown. "What is it?"

"Hold on," muttered Harry. He ran the same scanning spells over his wife and her concerned frown turned into a look of fury when she saw the tracking charms. As Harry cast his eyes around, looking for something to transfer them to, he heard a loud honking outside, echoed by similar sounds. Geese migrating, it seemed; not surprising, giving it was getting colder…

He grinned and transferred the spells from his wife to the animals, thankful for the weather and their path over his house.

"Who the hell put charms on me?" demanded Ginny hotly.

"They were on me too," said Harry grimly. "I think it was those Regulators yesterday."

Ginny looked even more upset, "Without so much as authorization?! They came to you! What are they playing at?!"

"I don't know," admitted Harry. "But I'm pretty sure if I keep going through the casebook, I'm going to figure out what they want."

"Given what they just did, you might not have the time to do that." Ginny looked concerned and thoughtful, "Just be careful."

"I'll try my best," promised Harry, putting his arm around his wife and listening to the Quidditch game on the Wireless before they both retired to bed. She fell asleep before he did and Harry found himself musing for a brief moment before tucking the casebook into his pajama pocket.

If people would put tracking charms, why not just sneak into his house? At least with it on his person, he was guaranteed to wake up if they tried to get it. Tomorrow, he would tell Ron and Hermione what was going on and he was sure that, between the three of them, they would be able to figure out a plan, just as they always had, and move on from there.

Reassured, Harry drifted off to sleep, Ginny curled up next to him under his arm; this, at least, was nice and normal, unlike so many other things that had happened today.


	4. Chapter 4

Harry awoke before Ginny and, after showering and getting ready for the day, made his way to the kitchen. He placed some bacon in a muffin tin and baked it for a few minutes before removing it and cracking eggs with some seasoning and cheese and replacing the tin in the oven.

As breakfast baked, Harry made tea. Ginny was usually practically incapable of speaking until she had caffeine, though Harry could relate. As he filled the pot with water, Lily happily skipped into the kitchen, looking bright and cheerful, her hair in tangles and her pajamas of pink platypuses running around chasing each other. "Hi Daddy!"

"Good morning," said Harry, wishing he could bottle some of her energy. Potions could do a lot but giving people the boundless energy children possessed did not seem to be one of them.

"Can I have Mouth Melties today?" asked Lily, looking hopefully at the cereal box sitting atop the icebox.

Harry shook his head, "I'm making breakfast. Maybe tomorrow."

The girl made a face.

"Have you taken a bath?"

"I took one last night," said the girl, shifting in a very suspicious way.

Harry smiled, "You can take another one. I'll pack you lunch. No crusts."

"Okay Daddy!" Lily ran off and Harry, bemused, packed his own lunch of the leftover pasta before making Lily's lunch, cutting the crusts off the bread. He continued to cut, though, shaping the ham and cheese sandwich to be in the shape of an owl.

Would his parents have done this for him? Harry would never know the answer to that and his only example of his aunt and uncle wasn't the best for his children's health. Was not making her eat everything spoiling her? Certainly, the birds outside were glad to have the crusts…

Harry sighed. He could only try his best. Sometimes it felt as if his year living on the run and fighting the Darkest wizard of the age had been easier than being a father. He shook his head at these thoughts, trying to push them away before setting a small cup of strawberries in the lunchbox as well before closing it.

He placed Lily's lunch on the table before moving to the oven to take out breakfast. As he did this, Ginny entered the kitchen in her ivory bathrobe, lurching like a zombie towards the tea.

"Good morning dear," Harry said, watching her with amusement as he flicked his wand to cool down breakfast a bit.

"Gomorga," mumbled Ginny back as she wrapped her hands around the mug and breathed in the aroma before drinking it with a shuddering moan of happiness.

Harry chuckled and began to put breakfast on plates, pouring juice for Lily, who had just come back into the kitchen, wearing a pink shirt and jeans. "Hi Mummy!"

"Hi," mumbled Ginny, managing a smile though she still didn't seem to really be awake. They ate, Ginny waking up more as they did. Harry gave both her and Lily a kiss on the cheek before he left; Ginny usually brought Lily to daycare since her hours started later than Harry's.

Slightly envying his wife's ability to go back to sleep for a bit, Harry focused and Apparated to Ron and Hermione's house. Like himself, Hermione worked for the Ministry, so he was relatively sure she hadn't left yet.

He knocked on the door and was surprised when Hugo opened it up a few minutes later.

"Hi Uncle Harry!" said the boy.

"Hey," said Harry, though he could hear Hermione and Ron bickering over breakfast. "You should have gotten an adult, Hugo. Anyone could have been knocking."

The boy nodded, following Harry towards the kitchen.

"You said you would be willing to give turkey bacon a try, Ron."

"I gave it a try!"

"You glanced at it, said 'It doesn't look right' and haven't touched it!"

"Well look at it, it's all funny and it's not even real bacon!"

"You didn't even try it yet!"

"Who would want to try this?!"

Harry quietly cleared his throat, but it was loud enough to make them look up with surprise. "Harry? What are you doing here? Are you hungry?" Hermione checked her watch, Ron doing the same.

"Just wanted to get your opinions on something," Harry explained, amused. "I wanted to do it before work, and thanks, but I already had breakfast." He took a seat at the table, Ron looking so interested in what he had to say that he was even eating the turkey bacon without complaint.

Taking a breath, Harry told them about the visit from the ICW Regulators, what he had seen in the case he had seen and the tracking spells he had found. By the end of his story, both of his best friends had looks of outrage on their faces.

"They can't put tracking spells on you for no reason! You're an Auror and you're not even under investigation or anything!" Ron looked livid.

Hermione looked very thoughtful, "I'm really curious about why they would wait so long."

"Business as usual," said Ron, scowling. Harry knew why; Ron had been irritated in the aftermath of the war. The ICW had to have known what was going on, but there had been no assistance from them during the war at all. Voldemort had even _left the country_ to kill Grindelwald and the ICW had done… nothing.

Harry, on the other hand, couldn't begrudge the organization. The British Ministry had not inspired much confidence in him, and he had only been a teenager. How they must have looked to the rest of the world, Harry didn't know, but he was sure there was a lot of confusion and uncertainty and thus a delay in action.

"You think it's because of the necromancy thing?" Harry asked Hermione, who looked thoughtful before answering.

"Maybe. I know in a few books, there's fears about Necromancers being very close to the Veil, so close that even just the mention of their names can bring them back."

"That would explain their whole thing about not disturbing him," said Harry.

Ron ate more eggs before speaking, "You said Dumbledore was working this case with him, yeah? The one you saw?" When Harry nodded, Ron frowned more and said, "Why wasn't he in the Order then? You said they got along. Sirius liked him, so he couldn't be too bad. Not in our time, but he wasn't in that picture, right?"

"Good point," admitted Harry, frowning. "I don't know why he wasn't."

Hermione stood up suddenly, "Harry, we're going to be late for work. But… maybe during lunch, we could ask that portrait of Dumbledore that Kingsley put up."

"That's a thought," said Harry, nodding. "Even if it doesn't tell us anything, I'll just keep going through the casebook until something answers it."

Harry ruffled Hugo's hair as he left the house, "Take care, little H!" said Harry, making the boy giggle.

"Bye Uncle Harry," said Hugo, grinning at Harry and hugging his mother before they both left.

Hermione turned to him after they both Apparated into the Ministry atrium. "Good luck."

"Thanks," said Harry, heading down to Law Enforcement, greeting other people as he headed to his desk. The morning passed surprisingly quietly and after having his pasta, Harry made his way to the portrait of Albus Dumbledore.

He wasn't surprised that the canvas was empty. No doubt the portrait preferred being in Hogwarts most, just as the man had in life.

"Excuse me, Dumbledore, could I bother you for a bit?" he said, knowing that the portrait would be able to hear him.

Indeed, a few short seconds later, Albus Dumbledore appeared on the canvas, blue eyes twinkling. "Good afternoon, Harry. This is a pleasant surprise. How may I help you?"

"I was hoping you'd be able to help me with something," said Harry.

"Well, I shall certainly try my best," said the portrait, smiling.

Harry suspected that wouldn't be the case for long. "I was wondering what you could tell me about Alphard Black."

Surprise was not an expression Harry had seen on the living Dumbledore. He imagined, however, that it would be like the portrait's: eyes widening almost comically, mouth parting slightly and complete and undiluted _shock_ on that usually all-knowing, ancient face.

"What is it in particular that you want to know about him?" asked Dumbledore, looking curious.

Thinking for a few seconds, Harry asked, "You worked on at least one case together. Were you close?"

"I respected Alphard very much and I like to think it was mutual," said Dumbledore. "You see, he was the only student that openly disagreed with Hagrid's expulsion in 1942. Alphard and Tom Riddle were dormmates, so you can see that such a stance took quite a bit of bravery."

Harry stared at Dumbledore; that fact surprising him. He had known that Alphard was Sirius's uncle, making him older, but he had never expected that particular tidbit.

"Was he a Death Eater? A lot of Riddle's old…" Harry trailed off; Dumbledore had already shaken his head. "Was he in the Order then?"

"No," said Dumbledore, a different look in the portrait's eyes as it looked at Harry. It wasn't like any look Harry had seen before; this was obvious assessment. "Harry, I am starting to fear that you may have stumbled upon the same case Alphard did. His last case."

"What case?" asked Harry, mouth unnaturally dry. "Who was his client?"

"It was larger than Britain, larger than the continent," said Dumbledore, the portrait's voice very very low, so low Harry had to strain to hear it. " Those blue eyes burned as they met Harry's own. "It was so large that to bring the guilty to justice would cause more problems than solving it."

Harry said nothing, waiting for the portrait to say more.

"Why are you asking about him?"

"The ICW wants his things. He left them to Sirius…"

"Who left everything to you. Of course." Dumbledore's portrait looked very tired. "We naively hoped that we would be able to stem the course of things, with me as the Supreme Mugwump, Alphard as a Detcro. It went so wrong so quickly… for every crime we uncovered it seemed nine more took its place… it was a Hydra…"

Dumbledore looked up at Harry soberly. "Alphard had far too much to worry about. I didn't want to add the Order to his already overwhelming burden."

Far too much to worry about? Harry was stunned, to say the least; Dumbledore thought Alphard's case was more important than to ask him to focus on Voldemort?

Just how big _had_ this case been?

One thing came to Harry's mind; Alphard's note to Sirius. He had told Sirius to burn the casebook rather than let the ICW get it.

Could the burden Dumbledore was referring to mean dealing with the ICW?

He would have to check more into the casebook to know for sure, no doubt. But he could ask a bit. "Do you know what the ICW could want? Something tells me he didn't trust them but Regulators are saying he was the last one to know about an artifact that's really dangerous."

"Some roads Alphard traveled roads I never knew," said Dumbledore, giving a slight shake of his head, looking sad and yet bemused. "I will say, however, he always exercised caution in regards to others. If he truly had such dangerous items, I am confident they would be safe and secure."

Harry nodded, glancing at his watch. "Thank you."

"You are quite welcome. And… Harry?" When Harry looked up at the portrait, Dumbledore looked concerned. "Please be careful. I… I strongly suspect that Alphard's death was not by natural causes."

This made Harry curious, of course, but he replied, "I'll bear that in mind. Thank you."

Thinking over what he had learned, Harry returned to his desk. With nothing happening that the Hit Wizards couldn't take care of without Auror intervention, he ran another few scans over himself. Finding nothing, he found himself making his way towards Alphard's office once more.

The fish hid once more. Harry looked around the office, at the empty frame of Phineas's portrait.

Alphard had wanted the casebook burned before the ICW touched it. Dumbledore had told him he suspected the man's death wasn't by natural causes. Plus those Regulators had already cast tracking charms.

Harry had already lived through a war. He knew better than anyone that just because someone was paranoid didn't mean people weren't after them. He was sure the office had to have been warded, which was why it had reacted to him, but wards could break if people were determined. He cast a cleaning charm and took a deep breath before casting the very complex Fidelius Charm.

Now that he knew that the office was secure, and though he was tired from the spell he had just cast, he began to look around more at the details in the office. The books were ones he would have to read; as an Auror, they would be more than slightly beneficial, even the Dark Arts books. Settling in the chair, he took out the casebook and put his eye to the box after the first one he had viewed.

When he was fully in the memory, he looked around. He was in a comfortable living room where people were sitting and laughing.

The room had lots of light and space, with a sofa and two armchairs around a small table that had a few books and Alphard's smoked spectacles sitting upon it. Said man was in one of the armchairs, looking suspiciously at the occupant of the other armchair.

Harry found himself smiling; he knew this person very well. It was a much younger Sirius Black and on the sofa was Andromeda and… Harry found himself grinning even wider as a little girl sat by Andromeda, her hair rapidly changing colors. A strange sense of sadness emanated through Harry; three people from this obviously better day were dead.

He knew Andromeda would hex him if she thought he pitied her, so he focused instead on what was going on. Alphard was holding a wrapped parcel, raising an eyebrow.

"Open it, open it!" Sirius was saying excitedly, beaming broadly, eyes alight with mischief.

"That instantly makes me suspicious," said Alphard, inspecting the package. "If you put some sort of prank in this…" He opened the package tentatively using his wand and raised an eyebrow. "What…?"

Harry, on the other hand, roared with laughter. Hovering in front of the puzzled Alphard were a set of tie-dyed robes, the colors in a swirl.

"I… Well, thank you, Sirius," murmured Alphard while Andromeda laughed and Tonks perked up, looking at the robes with obvious interest.

"Oooo," said the little girl, her hair changing to match the robes.

As Harry watched, Alphard tugged on the robes and soon, he and Sirius were posing for a photograph, taken by a still laughing Andromeda. The scene made Harry smile; though Sirius's parents hadn't been the best from what Harry had seen and his godfather had told him, he did have family that cared about him.

Truthfully, if Harry didn't know better, he would have said the two were father and son, not uncle and nephew.

"Happy birthday, Uncle!" said Sirius, holding a cloth sack with a drawstring. Something that smelled delicious carried through the cloth; something sweet and Harry knew it had to be food.

"You make sure you share everything with the Potters and don't hoard it!" said Alphard sternly, making Sirius pout. "Andromeda, Dora, always a pleasure."

"Always our pleasure, Uncle," said Andromeda, smiling. "You could have just rented Sirius a flat instead of subjecting the Potters to him."

"Oi!" protested Sirius as Alphard grinned deviously.

"I've got my hands full with just this place," said the man.

"Hard to believe it was an abandoned Muggle warehouse," said Sirius, grinning. "Maybe I'll do that too."

"You can't prank your tenants," warned Alphard. "You have to take care of them."

The teenaged Sirius Black nodded and soon, Alphard was alone. He glanced with a slight smile at the tie-dyed robes he had on and shook his head, removing them. He was back in his usual Muggle-style suit, Harry noticed, and the man put on his smoked spectacles, trenchcoat and hat before leaving.

If this was a complex, it was obviously a magical one; the hallways reminded Harry of the ones in St. Mungo's, with giant soapsud-like lights. Alphard entered a very tidy lift and exited in a neat and clean lobby.

There was a desk where a man with a peacock blue tie and suit jacket sat. Harry knew, despite it being a suit and not robes, that this had to be a watchwizard. Most likely, he was a guard for the building. A glance at the postboxes showed eight of them. There was a small seating area with comfortable sofas and chairs and vending machines to the right and to each side of the main entrance had large panel etchings of what seemed to be constellations.

Harry furrowed his brow, thinking. He had seen this building before, he was sure of it… it struck him as he followed Alphard outside. Percy had lived in this building, when he had left the Burrow and sided with the Ministry during the war. Harry knew it because they had helped Percy move out when he was getting married.

A short walk later, they were back at Alphard's office, Alphard taking out notes from his desk and placing the globe on said desk as well. As Harry looked at the notes, he realized that Alphard was looking at information regarding all of the people that Dumbledore had placed tracking charms on.

"Alphard," said Phineas's voice, making him look up. "Dumbledore was wondering if it would be possible for him to visit."

"Thank you, Great-Grandfather. If you'd please tell him that he's welcome to visit, I'd truly appreciate it."

"Hmph. He's distracting you. I should tell him you're not here."

Alphard chuckled, "Say what you will about him, but he does know a lot about different issues and his input can be invaluable. He's the one that gave me authorization for this case, after all."

"You need to settle down and find a nice lady to carry on the Black family name!"

"I'm pretty sure the others have that covered," said Alphard, while Phineas pursed his lips. "If you'd acknowledge Uncle Mar-"

" _Alphard."_ Phineas's voice was dangerous. "How many times must I tell you to not mention that-"

"Well, though you don't acknowledge it, a member of the Black family does carry on the family name," said Alphard, shaking his head and returning his attention to the map.

"Your father also wants to know if they will see you at Sunday dinner."

The detective sighed, "I truly don't know, Great-Grandfather. It depends on what happens. Tell them maybe, please."

Grumbling, the portrait slid out of the frame. Alphard chuckled and went back to his globe, the amused look of only a moment ago fading into a look that Harry knew could only be slight despair.

A few minutes later, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in," said Alphard. Harry wasn't surprised to see Dumbledore. The man was wearing steel blue robes with slight accents of light grey and pearl and he frowned the moment he entered the room, his light blue eyes on the globe.

He took a breath, making Harry curious. "Have you been working long?" asked Dumbledore.

"I took a break this morning," said Alphard, looking up pointedly. "Don't get so fixated by the word Dark that you forget the word Art is there too, Dumbledore."

The man said nothing, though Harry could see a slight flush on Dumbledore's face.

"That aside, would you like anything to eat or drink?"

"No thank you," said Dumbledore, settling into the seat. "So what have you learned that warrants you using a Dark artifact to tap into the leylines again despite the dangers?"

Alphard gave Dumbledore a look that would have been better suited to Voldemort's face as he pushed the globe to the side. He picked up his notes, tapping them into a neat pile. Harry frowned, noticing Alphard doing this for a surprisingly long time. A glance towards his eyes showed the scarlet aspect brighter than usual, reminding Harry very much of the wizard he had fought.

Dumbledore said nothing during this time until Alphard finally spoke, settling the notes in front of Dumbledore. His voice was fine. "These people all have illegally purchased children. Though that alone is enough to warrant punishment, I also looked into the children. Who they were, where they were from… to bring them home." When Dumbledore nodded, Alphard pointed towards the globe, "I needed that to confirm my suspicions."

"Which were?" inquired Dumbledore, flipping through the notes and looking as if he wanted to send each person into Azkaban right then and there.

"Not one of these children attend an ICW accredited school," said Alphard, frowning. "There are over two hundred wizarding schools, so I know you'll probably say it's just luck. But it can't be. If the child of an ambassador can be taken, it obviously isn't solely status."

Harry stared at Alphard, confused. What was the man talking about? There were only eleven Wizarding schools, not over two hundred. But Dumbledore was not looking surprised.

Could it be that only the eleven schools associated with the International Confederation of Wizards got the attention? That would certainly explain a lot to Harry, who had longed for a school that hadn't required his children living away from him but he hadn't known of any.

It had never occurred to him to look beyond the most famous schools; the others were all too far away and he got to visit Hogwarts to give Defense pointers sometimes, so he could see his children still. He had thought it was a win-win but now he wondered if there had been a third option after all...

Dumbledore was frowning, "ICW accreditation means instant assistance if the school opts to request it."

Harry nearly screamed in frustration. Again here was a chance for the ICW to have helped during the war and again, nothing. Snape had been on their side. Why oh why hadn't he found an excuse to get the ICW?

"I know we didn't request ICW intervention when I was a student because we knew the threat was from within," said Alphard. "But here's the other thing… look at the list of schools that have filed for accreditation in the past fifty years. The same exact schools."

Harry looked at the list that Alphard had pushed towards Dumbledore, curious about these schools that he had never heard of.

 _Madrasa Akemo_

 _Wu Xueyuan_

 _Tona Sansthaan_

 _Walytja Academy_

 _Mak Hussistak_

 _El Sosneado Colegio_

"An extraordinarily high number of students have been taken that happen to attend one of these six schools," said Alphard.

Dumbledore frowned, "Repeated requests for accreditation usually means they've met the standards. And yet they've had repeated refusals? But I haven't even _heard_ of any requests from the Education department…"

The two were silent for a moment.

Alphard drummed his fingers, looking grim. Harry frowned, wondering why these schools would be rejected yet Dumbledore, as Supreme Mugwump, hadn't heard of a request.

Schools that had just been associated with missing children.

"Even though they've been rejected, that means people in the ICW know how to get to these schools, Dumbledore," Alphard said. "Someone involved had to have seen the lists of kids attending."

"Alphard," said Dumbledore quietly. "Surely you don't think that beings in the ICW would be kidnapping children." He indicated the fifth school, "The Magical Congress of the United States, at the very least, would be chasing them off from the western coast."

"Except it wouldn't look strange for ICW to be there because of Ilvermorny," said Alphard quietly. "Ilvermorny, according to every record I've dug up _never requested ICW accreditation."_

Harry shook his head. That couldn't be right. How else would a school gain international accreditation if not for applying for it?

"Ilvermorny has strong ties and has produced a lot of ICW members," said Alphard quietly. "If they're involved in this, well, one of them could have just… signed the forms. Given the accreditation and the excuse needed to intervene."

"But none of this makes sense. If your theory is correct, people are collaborating to steal children. Why would anyone do that?"

Alphard was silent before sighing and muttering, "Honestly? I don't know. We both saw the conditions at the Market." The man narrowed his eyes, "I'm Dark, but I'm not a monster, Dumbledore. "

"I know." Dumbledore murmured. "I know."

The room was silent; Harry could hardly even hear the bustling city outside.

"This isn't up to your usual standard. It's a lot of guesswork," said Dumbledore finally. "And only verified by one artifact."

"What do you want me to do, go to each Headmaster or Headmistress of these schools and get a list of if any students have gone missing?" asked Alphard, looking exasperated.

Harry was glad that he wasn't Alphard when he saw the devious grin and twinkle in Dumbledore's eyes.


	5. Chapter 5

International portkeys were even worse than the normal ones. Harry felt as if he had been on a tiny dinghy in the middle of a wild storm. The winds of magic felt as if they were ripping him apart, bit by bit, into shreds and it seemed to last for ages until suddenly, abruptly, it stopped.

Feeling very much like he suspected fish that were suddenly wrenched out of the water must feel, Harry gasped, taking deep gulps of air as he stared at the azure blue sky. White whisps of clouds lazily drifted by, as if mocking him. The man looked towards Alphard who, to Harry's great surprise, didn't look very fazed at all. Instead he was glancing skyward before adjusting his hat before looking around.

The only thing nearby, besides the very hilly grasslands and small, scattered oak trees, was a small cluster of buildings. One of the larger buildings had two bell towers and seemed to be made of adobe; they reminded Harry vaguely of the Spanish missions Binns had once glossed over in covering some world history. That day had been colder than usual and hard to sleep so he and Ron had played hangman for the class.

As they walked towards the buildings, Harry could see someone waiting. She was slim with dark gold skin and hair that fell in an outrageous mess of uncontrollable curls to her elbows. Harry chuckled; her hair was as dark and untameable as his own.

"Professor Galvan," said Alphard as he approached, glancing at her hands before shaking it.

"Detcro Black," said the woman, nodding to him as she led the way.

Harry looked around the grounds of what could only be a school. It was simple yet comfortable; he could see a garden with a few school-age children tending to it as they entered the largest building, the one he had seen with the bell towers.

"Is school in session?" asked Alphard, asking what Harry was curious about as well.

Galvan gave an amused smile, "We offer optional summer courses as well as a summer program."

Alphard nodded and soon the two were in a rather plain office with two magical portraits and bookshelves. On a perch sat a gorgeous golden eagle. "I admit, I am curious what assignment would bring you here," admitted Galvan, looking at him.

"I was wondering… have many students requested transfers from here? Sudden ones? Or have any just... vanished?"

Glancing towards the eagle on the perch, Galvan glanced back at Alphard. Harry noticed the slightly nervous look on her face. "We… we thought it was the skin-walkers or the raven mockers..." Her voice was very soft and low, with obvious fear. "They've been spreading outwards…"

Alphard frowned, "I thought they were just animagi and hags?"

She shook her head, "We don't know who has told the world that lie. They are very real and very dangerous, Detcro. Our friends give us slight protection." Here she glanced towards the eagle.

The man frowned, "Has your Congress been told about this?"

"Yes. They've sent Aurors but… it's as if people just… disappear. They are… very crafty…" The woman trailed off, "Most of our students do not use the boarding school option. But even those that do not have been affected…" She looked suddenly hopeful, leaning towards Alphard. "You were sent here by the ICW. Are they acting upon this?"

"It might be related," said Alphard quietly. "While I am here, I will try to assist you the best I can. Has anyone seen anything?"

"Most people are asleep or inside. We have told everyone to burn sage but even that seems to be failing…" Galvan seemed close to despair. "Maybe Arthur's seen something?"

"Arthur?" asked Alphard, while Harry found himself making a mental note of the name as well.

"Arthur Shapley," explained Galvan. "He's our Astronomy teacher but most nights he's at the Observatory." Perhaps noticing that Alphard looked as confused as Harry, for there were no huge telescopes on the grounds, the woman continued, "Lick Observatory. The Muggles there are far too preoccupied to notice anything odd about us, usually, and our spells ensure they do not notice us. He stays here for the summer program."

"I'll speak with him next, then. If it's okay with you, I'll be taking a look around the grounds."

Galvan simply nodded while the eagle opened one bright brown eye as if to inspect Alphard. It preened itself before holding out a feather in its beak to the man. Alphard glanced at Galvan, who seemed surprised, but he took the feather and the eagle returned to its slumber.

Following Alphard around showed he did the same things Harry would have. First he checked the physical perimeter, looking for easy ways into the school. Harry found his approval of the man's common sense moving up; he had seen so many simple ways around powerful wards that did not involve magic that sometimes he felt like screaming. Once someone had runes etched in a sloppy manner and so a thief had simply tossed a small rug over the runes to cross.

But the physical area seemed to be protected. The same, Harry was sure, when Alphard began his scans. The man walked in circles around the school grounds, no doubt looking a bit insane to anyone who did not know what he was doing. He ran through various scans and even Harry frowned. These were _not_ weak wards.

So what was going on here?

It was easy to see Alphard had the same frustrated look. What he did next startled Harry though; he took out a small knife and walked once more. Every so often, blood would fall onto the ground. It was almost as if Alphard wanted that. When he completed the last circle, he healed the injury. Was he making another ward?

And a strange eerie shriek rose through the air, a wail that made Harry's hair stand on end before he saw a woman staring directly at them. She was nude except for the blood-crusted coyote fur that covered most of her tan body and Harry saw her legs seemed to be the same way, not human, the tail showing it… but it was something else, the _aura_ that just screamed malevolence, grimness, that made Harry think immediately of Dementors… and yet, the woman… wasn't there… she was, he could see her plainly, but she wasn't…

He suspected this must be a Skin-walker. And yet, there was something strange about her.

A glance towards Alphard showed the smoked spectacles had been lowered and the crimson around his eyes was glittering.

"Drop the act." Alphard's voice was strange; it was cold, yes, but somehow also kind. "We both know you would not have come if I truly were disturbing you."

That answered Harry's question. She wasn't alive.

He had always thought of Necromancy as being Inferi. But this was a completely different aspect of it, it seemed. It reminded Harry very much of the Resurrection Stone's effect; not bringing the dead _truly_ back to life but allowing a bridge between the two worlds...

Would the Resurrection Stone be considered a dangerous artifact, then? One connected Necromancy? The thought made Harry frown; he was certainly not a Dark wizard and the Stone had been used to stop a Dark Lord. It seemed that Necromancy, like other forms of magic, also had its shades of grey.

The woman gave a strange smile, a giggle that bordered on the edge of sanity, her eyes bright yellow and her pointed teeth the same shade.

"Have you seen children being taken?"

The yellow eyes flickered but the woman nodded. "All children." Her hand moved towards her belly and her eyes back to Alphard. "All kinds. Ripped. Torn. Stolen by the Belagana _._ Like you. But not like you. Masks."

Harry's mind went back to the Market. _All kinds._

It wasn't just witches and wizards suffering then.

Alphard had obviously made the same connection because he had sighed. "Did they wear all black? Like this?" He held up a picture of what Harry knew was a uniformed Regulator.

The woman hissed at the picture, her yellow eyes narrow with hate but she nodded. Alphard put away the picture looking just as pained as Harry felt.

Harry closed his eyes. Regulators. It couldn't be.

"Where have they taken the children?"

"The City. Saline City. By Mud Creek and Coyote Creek Sloughs. Find them."

"I will," promised Alphard.

The woman looked him up and down and then a strange warmth surrounded the area, a far cry from the aura she had given off, a warmth that seemed filled with peace… and then it was all gone, along with the woman. Alphard shook his head, pushing up his spectacles. He looked frustrated, pacing a bit. Harry could see why that was. He walked back towards the school, pausing at a small metal sign that Harry hadn't noticed earlier.

 _Mak Hussistak_

 _Our Future_

The Detcro stared at the sign and Harry saw a look of determination, fiercer than ever on the man's face. It made him spare the tiniest amount of pity for whomever was doing this because Harry knew in that moment, Alphard Black would use all the vast Dark Arts knowledge he had to make them pay.

And the Auror found himself liking the man more for it. Because he heard so many people try to defend the Dark Arts being taught at schools like Durmstrang but had fought so many lost to it…

Was this what a Dark Arts user was supposed to be? Someone feared by some and respected by many others, someone who a school headmistress could beg for help because of that power, whom a spirit would speak to because of the abilities he had?

 _Don't get so fixated by the word Dark that you forget the word Art is there too._ Alphard had said that and in observing him, Harry realized that perhaps that slim line… made all the difference. Appreciate the Art but don't lose yourself in it.

This man was nothing like Voldemort despite having lived with him for years in Hogwarts. Despite being from the Black family and a necromancer… Alphard Black wasn't a bad man.

But Harry knew from that look, he would be very willing to do bad things if that's what it took to keep others safe.

He wasn't sure if Alphard would have been a good Auror, since they frowned on use of the Darker magic unless necessary, but if the man had wanted to be, Harry felt he would have been nothing but an asset to them.

They were approaching a slim, sunburnt man with longish dark brown hair, in jeans and a shirt displaying _University of California_ on it. He peered curiously through round spectacles at Alphard who, Harry noticed, had glanced at the man's hands first. He seemed to do that a lot and it made Harry curious. "Lomasi told me you were looking for me?"

"Lomasi?"

"Oh, sorry. The principal, Lomasi Galvan." He held out his hand, "I'm Arthur Shapley."

"Alphard Black. Yes, I wanted to ask if you happened to see anything. She told me you were out late sometimes."

Shapley nodded and the two men walked, Harry listening closely. "Most of us don't wear robes," the astronomer said quietly. "We have a policy of dark khaki pants and white polo shirts for the students and we're expected to look professional during school hours. Only more traditional visitors wear robes." When Alphard nodded, Shapley continued, "I've seen figures in robes and cloaks. Can't quite make them out, but that alone shouts they're not from here. I thought it might be creatures at first but creatures can't evade spells and the like. It's definitely wizarding beings."

"Cloaks. Do you think they could be trenchcoats?" asked Alphard, indicating his own outfit.

The astronomer hummed, "I suppose it's possible, but no one around here really wears them because it's hot. Especially in the summer."

Alphard nodded, frowning slightly. "Last thing. Saline City, have you heard of it?"

The man furrowed his brow. "That's a distance. It's not really called that anymore. People call it Drawbridge." Shapley smiled, "It's mostly abandoned now, but there are still one or two residents. Was a place where a lot of people would pass through. Not so much now, though."

"Would you call it a... ah, an Old Way, then?" asked Alphard quietly. Harry could hear the unspoken capital letters in the words.

"I suppose you could say that," said Shapley, not seeming to notice what Harry had.

Harry paused, hearing that. _An Old Way._

Old ways, old routes… ley lines intersected… a look towards Alphard's face showed the necromancer's obvious comprehension as well.

"Thank you, Professor."

"Thank _you_ if you can stop this madness," said Shapley, turning back towards where Harry knew a few students were.

Alphard smirked slightly, looking skyward before moving off the grounds and Apparating. Harry looked around; they were on marshy grounds and a few buildings stood half-heartedly around. It was a quiet place, just as Shapley had said.

Recognizing the spell Alphard was doing as a very intricate trap, there were steps that the man was doing Harry didn't recognize. He wondered if Alphard was using the ley lines here and part of Harry could hear Dumbledore having a fit if that were the case.

They didn't have to wait long. Alphard had finished supper and was waiting in the area when both saw the figure suddenly appear. Harry recognized the Regulator garb immediately and loathing filled him even as appreciation for Alphard having spoken to what could have only been a dead Skin-walker for information flooded him.

The Regulator was hit with a binding charm without warning but they were well-trained and it showed. It was thrown off immediately and a flurry of spells flew towards them without a word. Alphard dodged these and made another motion with his wand, one Harry recognized as the Regulator blocked the purple light.

The Detcro was being serious. That spell was the same one that Death Eaters had used; even the silenced version had kept Hermione down for a week in the Hospital Wing…

Lightning and thunder rumbled, striking where the two were. Water rose from the marsh, the land seemed to tremble… the two duelists were skilled and it showed.

"Come on," urged Harry, despite knowing Alphard could not hear him, as a spell hit Alphard hard enough to make him tumble. "Come on!"

The Detcro had hurled his spectacles at the Regulator and they turned into a sheet of sharp shards of glass, burying themselves in the Regulator's armor. Harry saw that the crimson streak around Alphard's eyes were practically a neon beacon in the night and the man chanted ugly words, ones that made Harry's skin crawl, .

A streak of light appeared in the trembling ground, sizzling and burning, turning the same color as the streak in Alphard's eyes before wrapping around the Regulator. It seared through the armor as if it were simply butter, burns appearing on pale skin.

" _Break into pieces,"_ Alphard said, his voice cold. Harry heard a loud snap and the Regulator's arm was at an unusual angle, as was the leg. The Detcro walked closer, the light from the ground illuminating him as he approached the Regulator.

"Alphard!"The Regulator shouted it, surprising Harry. The normal disembodied voice shared by all Regulators was gone. The spell Alphard had used must have burned off the voice changer or just destroyed it with the force of the spell. This was definitely a male voice with no accent, which meant… he wasn't from here. "Alphard, what the blazes are you doing?!"

Harry glanced towards Alphard, who had frozen in shock at the voice before replying in a voice full of anger. "I should be asking _you_ that, dear cousin."

Cousin?

As Harry watched, Alphard strode furiously towards the Regulator, ripping off his mask to reveal a man was most _definitely_ related to him and Sirius. He was older than both of them, though, looking about Dumbledore's age.

Alphard put his wand to the man's throat, eyes still blazing crimson.

"Arcturus, if you're involved with what's happening here, if you're trying to implicate the Regulators in a frame up-"

"With what's happening here?" echoed Arcturus, staring at Alphard with confusion. " _Frame up!?"_ Now he sounded indignant. "I _am_ a bloody Regulator you dolt!"

"Don't be stupid, there's no way someone like _you_ would ever be one," said Alphard distastefully.

The man looked ready to spit in his fury. "I don't like Muggles but that doesn't mean I want people out there murdering them!"

Alphard stared for a few seconds before scoffing, "Sure. Let's just say I believe you. What the hell would a senior Regulator like you be doing all the way out here in the middle of nowhere so far from home, then?"

"You expect me to answer you here, like this?!" demanded Arcturus.

"Well, if you don't answer, you'll suffer just like those children have," hissed Alphard, hands curling into fists.

"What children? What are you-" Arcturus let out a frustrated growl, "How are you even here anyway? You need approval to trav-wait! Wait!" He had just seen Alphard's wand raise. "Fine. Fine! Can't we talk somewhere else? Not like I can get away from you, you know where I live."

Alphard snapped his fingers and, completely undignified, Arcturus Black fell down in a heap. The night was back to normal and the Detcro rummaged in his pocket before tugging out a spare pair of smoked spectacles.

"And we aren't in the middle of nowhere," grumbled Arcturus, standing and tapping parts of his armor, obviously fixing them, the disembodied voice associated with Regulators returning. "This is a marsh but we are in one of the fastest growing places on the continent."

Obviously sensing Alphard's patience getting ready to snap once more, Arcturus sighed and began to lead the way to an abandoned looking building. He waved his wand in a motion and the door slid open, revealing a surprisingly clean, definitely not abandoned building.

"Safehouse," said Arcturus's disembodied voice as they entered. Once inside, he tugged off his mask and the damaged armor. Harry could see replacements of different sizes on shelves and hooks in another room. "We have different necessities here." He glanced towards Alphard, who said nothing. "Have you eaten?" When Alphard nodded, Arcturus seemed discomforted and continued walking through the safehouse towards a small kitchen.

It was an awkward silence as Alphard stood leaning against a wall and Arcturus made a sandwich. Harry was surprised the older man would even do that much, given that his family had a house elf. He wondered why Arcturus kept glancing towards Alphard; it was almost as if the older man wanted his approval. Harry would have thought it would be the other way around.

"You keep saying children," said Arcturus.

"What are you doing here, Arcturus?" Alphard's voice was still cold and ringing.

"I'm working!" Arcturus said, looking upset.

The look on Alphard's face was so dangerous even Harry winced.

"I made a mistake," muttered Arcturus with a sigh, rubbing at his eyes. "Give me your word that no one will know. This isn't related to your case, Alphard."

Alphard said nothing but he didn't need to. It seemed Arcturus had something he had wanted to say for a long time, his grey eyes on the drab ceiling. "I never asked to be a Black. And everyone kept harping about upholding the family name… Melania and I didn't know each other before being married, you know. It was arranged. And I was here one day on duty, someone had been playing with Muggle technology and magic and turned some bridge into gold. It was a mess."

Arcturus ate more of his sandwich before muttering, "And then I met her. She was from here and thought the entire bridge thing was hilarious. Thought we should just keep it that way and I had downtime so she ended up showing me around and… one thing led to another. I would take missions out here just to see her." The older man was silent a moment, "She doesn't know about Melania. She doesn't have my name but our… children do. I kept telling her I'd marry her one day…"

Harry stared at the man while Alphard raised both eyebrows.

"I come here to see them. And my grandchildren. They're nothing like the ones you know. Orion is worse than his mother, Lucretia pretends we don't exist…"

The older man looked at Alphard, who had still said nothing. "Well? Going to go on about how I've disgraced the Blacks?" roared the man, looking furious for no good reason. "You, the apple of the patriarch's eye?"

"I think you were wrong in having a secret family on the other side of the world and lying to the woman who mothered some of your children," said Alphard quietly. "But given that you have children and grandchildren here, that safely rules you out as a suspect from my current case as well as gives credence to my theory of Regulators being involved in illegal activities."

"You keep mentioning children," said Arcturus, frowning. "What case has you out here? I'm the closest international law official here from the ICW, I'd be the one they send to the scene first."

Alphard hesitated before sighing and telling the older man what Harry knew; about the children and the Market and his theory regarding the schools and ICW.

"Some Regulators take artifacts or money," muttered Arcturus quietly, frowning. "But… this? Something like this? I can't…" he shook his head, looking at Alphard. "I can't see any of them doing something like that."

"Two witnesses have seen beings that could be Regulators by the wizarding school closest to here."

"But there _are_ no other Regulators that have been out here lately. It's just been me until my replacement comes tomorrow! We Apparate internationally from here because the Intersection gives our magic a boost to go further."

"Do you know who's been here before you?" asked Alphard. "Or someone who knows the area?"

Arcturus raked his fingers through his hair, silent.

"If one of your grandchildren were taken…" Alphard trailed off at the dangerous look the other man gave him.

"Do not attempt to make me feel guilty," muttered the man. "I'll look into it for you."

The silence was awkward once more. Finally Alphard spoke, "Do they… your children here… do they know you?"

Arcturus nodded before startling Harry by tugging a pouch from his pocket and pulling out photographs. He looked very proud as he flickered through the photos, Harry seeing a surprisingly large family. Alphard looked over them with a slight smile before Arcturus sighed, "No one knows. Not the other Regulators. Definitely not anyone in the family. Just… you."

"I wouldn't be a good investigator if I couldn't be discreet." Alphard stood. "There are definitely children vanishing from here, cousin. Warn your family of that, at the very least."

"I will." He paused as Alphard turned, "Where are you heading?"

"I have five other schools to visit."

"Alphard, you just used Dark spells in succession in a duel," said Arcturus, frowning. "And you traveled internationally. You need to rest."

"Resting won't solve the case or bring those children home." Alphard continued to walk. "I'll be back for that list within two days."

Arcturus stared in obvious disbelief, "Neither will you making mistakes! Alphard, don't be so arrogant! The Dark Arts are-" The Regulator stood up, trying to move around the table. "Alphard. _Alphard!"_

The Detcro had already left the safehouse and Harry felt queasy seeing him take out another international portkey.

"HARRY POTTER!"

The scream, which was most definitely _not_ from the memory, made Harry jump upright, snapping out of the spell on the casebook abruptly. Breathing heavily, he looked around the office, eyes wild until he realized who exactly had shouted at him.

Phineas Nigellus Black was in his portrait frame, frowning at Harry. "About time!" he said, looking most put out.

"Phineas?" muttered Harry. "What…?"

"Your wife has been looking for you in my house!" The portrait looked most discomforted. "I thought I heard something in here. Haven't heard things in here in years…" the portrait looked very saddened and fell silent.

"You loved him a lot, didn't you?" Harry lightly touched the casebook, "Alphard, I mean. Someone said he was the apple of your eye."

Phineas looked tired. "He was his own man. He served no one and had proper pride and respect for magic. It was the death of him."

"Someone else was under the impression that he didn't die of natural causes," said Harry slowly.

The portrait scoffed, "What, poisoned? Don't be ridiculous. That's what the unicorn horn was for."

"What?" Harry stared at the portrait in confusion.

"Goodness Potter, really, I thought you would have learned more by now," said Phineas, sighing and examining his hand idly.

Repressing the urge to say something rude to the portrait, Harry turned to leave the office. He'd go to Grimmauld Place and apologize for how late he must be if Ginny was looking for him.

"Leaving already?" asked Phineas.

Harry glanced back at him, "If you had married a woman like my wife, you wouldn't want to make her wait or look for you either."

With that, he left the office, not looking back at the portrait.


	6. Chapter 6

Ginny was, luckily, still at Grimmauld Place when Harry got there.

"I was hoping you were still here," said Harry, relieved. "What's happened?"

"They're at home," she said, looking displeased. "Regulators. And they brought their Commander with them." She gave a devious grin, "This place is still protected though. How did you know I was here?"

"Portrait," said Harry, rolling his eyes. Phineas was a strange portrait. For being a bigoted man, his portrait certainly could have betrayed them at any time like Kreacher and yet hadn't.

The two shared looks and Harry sighed, "Let's go see what they want. Where's Lily?"

"With Mum at the Burrow," said Ginny. They returned home and Harry could see the Regulators waiting in the living room with Timothy Gagnon, their Commander, who spoke without preamble.

"Auror Potter, when spells are placed on you it is for your protection."

The short, slender man gave Harry a look that clearly showed his irritation, his dark brown eyes boring into Harry's own. It made Harry adjust his gaze by a small amount; he was not a good Occlumens but he knew enough to ensure eye contact would not be met for it to be an issue.

Gagnon wore the same uniform as a Regulator, though his had no mask and four lines of gold etched through the ICW insignia on his arms.

"Commander, such spells are a massive invasion of privacy and only meant to be used on criminals," retorted Harry. The Regulators were no better than his Aurors or Hit Wizards, as he had seen in the casebook. He had thought that the higher qualifications and international responsibilities meant more but they were just better at hiding their errors and shames.

"Given the perils associated with this artifact, it is a precaution to help you," said Gagnon.

Harry raised both eyebrows, "Is that so? Funny that you don't even describe this artifact that's so dangerous yet you have absolutely no qualms about secretly placing me under invasive spells."

Gagnon did not blush but Harry could see his hands clenching and unclenching. "We had hoped that the Detcro's notes would assist in that regard."

"You don't know what it looks like?" asked Ginny hotly, looking upset. "All of this for something you don't even know?"

"We know the effects are fatal and that the Detcro was the last one in known possession of it," said Gagnon stubbornly. "We need anything that belonged to him, especially any notes."

"I said I would look. If that's all, then I'd like to be able to have some dinner and enjoy my evening," said Harry.

The room was awkwardly silent before Gagnon gave a brief nod and left, the two Regulators with him. Harry waited until they had left before checking himself and Ginny for tracking charms. He found none.

"Well that…" Ginny trailed off, seeing Harry having held up his hand.

The Regulators seemed to forget that he was a Wizarding Law Enforcement official as well. He cast more spells, checking into the area and narrowed his eyes.

There were listening spells in the room and though the range of Harry's revealing spells was rather limited, he was sure they extended throughout the entire property.

Ginny looked at him and he looked back at her. She gave an exasperated sigh. Harry reached into his pocket, looking for something he could temporarily use as a portkey. His fingers closed on a quill, which would work for this purpose. The man thought of Grimmauld Place as he made it and beckoned to his wife. She took the other end of the quill after it glowed and they were gone in a whirlwind of color before reappearing back in Grimmauld Place.

"What is their _problem?"_ asked Ginny, frustrated. "What could Alphard have had that they want so badly?"

"He found some dirt on some Regulators, I know that much," said Harry, flicking his wand to clean the fine dust off. He looked around the house. It had been relatively protected since the second war… they had had to leave after getting the locket, though, and with books that had been published…

Being cautious, Harry decided to cast a new Fidelius Charm on the property. He did so, feeling tired afterwards, and looked at his wife apologetically.

"I'm sorry, dear," said Harry, sighing. He began to empty out what he had in his pockets, wanting to double check everything in case the Regulators had managed to silently enchant anything.

"It's not your fault," said Ginny.

Harry just nodded, knowing that voicing the fact he still felt responsible for this mess would only have her lecture him about it. Even now, certain habits didn't completely fade. People only saw what they wanted to see: a hero. No one besides Ginny saw him when racked with nightmares about being locked in his cupboard and yelled at, or of people dying…

Rubbing his temples, Harry took a deep calming breath through his nose. He was sure if anyone knew he was still affected from things from so long ago, they would send him to St. Mungo's. The Wizarding World did not seem to have the same view of psychology as the Muggle world did, and Harry sometimes wished they did. But given how most wizarding beings viewed doctors, he could only imagine the view of therapists. And he knew that news of any treatment he looked into would be leaked out, not by Muggles but by the various wizarding people that kept eyes out for "Harry Potter Sightings!" even now.

Gathering his calm, Harry thought ahead. There was no doubt Gagnon would want the casebook. Harry doubted there was even an artifact at this point, with how the man was pressing for any notes or belongings. If that were the case, his best bet would be to continue looking through the casebook.

His wife was communicating with her parents through patronus and Harry stared at the silvery horse.

A sudden thought occurred to him. He hadn't been the only person to have Alphard's casebook. Sirius had.

Abruptly, Harry stood and returned to Sirius's room, looking once more towards the shelf where he had seen the parchment and the casebook.

If Alphard had had anything that would have helped in the war, Harry was sure his godfather would have taken note of it. Given how the Order reacted to a prophecy, thinking of it as a weapon, Harry was sure a powerful artifact would have been something noteworthy.

Sirius's writing was all over the parchment. Some seemed to be half-written letters. Others were drawings or crude insults towards Kreacher, which made Harry shake his head.

' _I never thought I'd be forced into this house again.'_

Harry closed his eyes at those words. Sirius had been in prison for twelve years for a crime he hadn't committed. Then he had been locked in this house he hated.

Why hadn't they disguised him? Harry had seen Alphard's ability to get around magical wards with non-magical disguises. Dumbledore had even been disguised once; why didn't it occur to him?

A pang of regret went through Harry and the man gave a soft, sad sigh. There was no point in thinking of what could have been. His gaze returned to Sirius's many notes and diagrams, but now something occurred to Harry as he stared at some of the strange riddle-like drawings.

Slowly, Harry turned the parchment, frowning. It looked as if the drawings had changed slightly. Fading in some parts that he had definitely noticed them in before.

"I solemnly swear I am up to no good," said Harry, hoping his godfather had given him a break and, thankfully, it seemed the man had. More lines began to appear. It wasn't a map of Hogwarts, though; this seemed to be something like a world map. There were bright threads of gold all over the map, thin, fine lines meeting in many places, crisscrossing...

Sirius's handwriting was surprisingly neat at the top.

 _An Atlas of Leylines_

Harry checked the map with a few scans, but it was most definitely _not_ a Dark object. Had his godfather been able to convert that information from Alphard's artifact, that globe, that Dark object… to a map? Harry suspected that had to be the case; this map would be far safer to use for knowing where one could tap into the leylines. Harry had seen how they amplified spells and the like.

"Mischief managed."

The map went blank and Harry tucked it into his pocket, returning to Sirius's various notes. Harry's hopes were low but finally, about three-quarters through the parchment stack, something caught his eye.

Dates. A list of different dates… all in 1977. Harry raised an eyebrow, glancing at the casebook. The dates were all in 1976 or 1977. No doubt, Alphard must have had other casebooks.

What had happened to them? Why did Sirius only have this one on the shelf? Had the others been ignored or left at the office? Or worse… taken? Mundungus had stolen a lot from Grimmauld Place, after all. And with Gagnon being adamant about needing _any_ notes…

Harry was suspecting that somehow, the ICW had gotten Alphard's other casebooks. And if that were the case, whatever information they wanted was in the casebook he had.

He glanced at the dates Sirius wrote. They were all a bit after the cases Harry had been looking at. And though Harry wanted to look at those cases more, with how the ICW was breathing down his neck, he had to find out if there even was an artifact and what knowledge could get the Regulators into such a determined state.

The boxes around the dates Sirius had written had a small asterisk; Harry had no doubt they were his godfather's addition. Wondering what made these different, Harry placed his eye next to the first such marked date and fell through into the memory.

He was back in Alphard's office, the man drinking some tea when there was a quick knock on the door and it opened before Alphard could speak.

A man with dark hair and a pale, twisted face entered. Harry narrowed his eyes; he knew this man. Antonin Dolohov, a Death Eater.

"Get out." Alphard's voice was cold and Harry looked back to see him standing, a furious look on his face.

Dolohov looked taken aback before sighing, "Alphard, just-"

"Have you given Riddle your hearing as well as your arm?"

"No one calls him that anymore, Alphard. I'd strongly suggest you don't either." Dolohov looked dangerous.

"I'll call him whatever I damn well please," said Alphard recklessly, his eyes boring into Dolohov's. "Whole host of names, should I go with Tommy? I like Tommy, has a long sort of vowel ending, lets you carry the name when you have to shout it."

Dolohov had whipped out his wand, his eyes narrowed as his breath quickened. Harry found himself reaching for his wand, wondering why Alphard hadn't done the same before he heard a loud sharp crack and realized Dolohov's arm had just been broken.

"You dare threaten me in my space? On my territory? Did you give him your intelligence too? Actually no, don't answer that, you obviously didn't have any if you even branded yourself in the first place."

"Stop trying to be so high and mighty," snapped Dolohov. "It's not what you think, he's trying to change things and we could use someone with your international influence-"

"Not going to happen. Now get out of my office or I'll rip out your skeleton and make it dance for Muggle children for Halloween."

Dolohov scowled but stormed out of the office, slamming the door behind him.

Alphard breathed heavily, as if he had just run a race.

"What on earth happened?" asked Phineas's voice, making Harry look towards the portrait, which looked surprised. "I thought you and him were good friends."

"His hands." Alphard said it quietly and Harry remembered the man's odd quirk. "The past few times I've seen him, they've been… it was small at first. But they look as if he's washed them in blood, Great-Grandfather. He has killed, more than once. And that mark on his arm… it's called the Dark Mark."

Necromancers dealt with death. It had never occurred to Harry that they might be able to see those that severed the thread of life, but in hindsight, why wouldn't they? It was obvious Alphard could see it and know, but then why not act upon it?

The Auror realized he knew; lack of proof. Certainly, Alphard could say Dolohov had killed... but who? No one was reported, no time frame, nothing. The thought frustrated Harry.

"If you're expecting me to disagree…" Phineas trailed off delicately.

Alphard gave the portrait a disgusted look, "You're okay with him turning our kind into slaves? Making Slytherin House, once known for ambition nothing but lemmings? Because I'm not, Great-Grandfather. I am of the Ancient and Noble House of Black and I will _never_ be anyone's slave!"

His voice was high and ringing. Phineas's portrait looked taken aback at this before Harry saw a strange expression on his face. It was a warm, proud expression, one that Harry hadn't even thought the portrait capable of making.

"What were you working on before he interrupted?" asked Phineas.

"Just overlooking everything." Alphard rubbed his eyes, looking tired. "That child smuggling ring…" Alphard looked sickened, "A lot of children died in it, others have been servants so long that they don't know any other lifestyle. Other Detcros are here because of language issues and possible connections to some of their cases too. I was just finishing up some notes for the ICW."

There was another tap at the door. Alphard scowled and Harry wondered if it was Dolohov once more. "Come in," said Alphard.

The door opened, revealing… someone. Harry found himself frowning. It was a short, slender figure, but the person's face couldn't be seen. The figure wore all grey, but it was such a dark grey that it was nearly black. The trenchcoat seemed to be made of dragonskin and, like Alphard, the visitor had a hat and smoked spectacles. Harry could see the motto of the ICW on the arm of the coat but this definitely wasn't a Regulator.

Glancing at Alphard showed that the man looked surprised as he stood. "Doyen Madison," he said nodding politely.

"After all you have done, Detcro, I insist you call me Jackson."

Alphard raised both eyebrows, "So… what brings the head of ICW Intelligence to my office?"

Harry did a double take, looking at the visitor. ICW's Intelligence Agency was similar to their own Department of Mysteries. Both departments worked not only in research but also in covert operations; it was why the Ministry called the people there Unspeakables. They couldn't speak about their work, but Harry had only heard rumors of the ICW's Verboten, which supposedly had similar roles as the Unspeakables.

"I wanted to thank you, firstly," said the man. "We tried looking into matters but…" The man looked exhausted. "With the resources allotted to us, it's difficult. So thank you."

"It was my pleasure to take out those monsters," said Alphard. "But you could have sent a letter, you didn't have to come here."

"Well, that leads to the other reason for my visit," explained Jackson. "Normally I would ask one of the other Detcros, but they're all overloaded with tying up their cases. I want you to look into something."

"You're…" Alphard raised an eyebrow, "You want to give me a case?"

"Yes, if you're willing. I know it seems odd, but…" The man sighed, "People think that a… a magical being is using their fish to curse a village. So… the case would be to catch a koi fish."

Alphard furrowed his brow, "A coy fish? Like it's pretending to be shy to come off as alluring? I think a merperson might be better suited for your needs…"

Harry snorted, imaging merpeople chasing a shy fish all around.

"No, not coy as in shy," said Jackson. "Koi, as in the really pretty carp."

"Oh!" Alphard shook his head, "Sorry. Um… yeah, sure. I'll give it a look. Where is it?"

Jackson chuckled before placing a small paperweight in the shape of an owl on the desk. "In Nasu. The portkey will bring you to your contact and translator. Our files stated you didn't speak Japanese. Is that accurate?"

"Your files are right," said Alphard while Harry made a face at the thought of using yet another international portkey. "I'll pack light."

"Just activate it whenever you're ready," said Jackson. "Your payment will be given upon completion." When Alphard nodded, the visitor turned and left.

Alphard had just put the portkey into his pocket when the door to his office slammed open, revealing a furious looking man Harry had never seen before though he recognized the uniform. This was, no doubt, the former ICW Commander before Gagnon.

Harry instantly disliked the man due to his unfortunate resemblance to Cornelius Fudge. The two could have been twins if Miller's hair had been darker instead of the platinum blond that it was.

"Black, are you trying to make a laughing stock out of my department!?"

"Miller, I think you do a good enough job of that yourself," retorted Alphard. "You should have caught this long ago."

The short man glared, "You should have more respect, Black, or you might find yourself short of approved cases from our organization!"

Alphard didn't seem to care very much about that judging from the look on his face.

"You had access to files that you shouldn't have been able to get!" said Miller, looking furious. "Only Law Enforcement can get access! Identities of Regulators cannot be given!"

"And..?"

"I want the name of the one that gave you those names, Black!"

Alphard scoffed, "Keep dreaming, Miller. I've got another case, so if you'll excuse me…"

"I will absolutely not excuse you, Black!" Miller followed Alphard, who grabbed his coat and hat. "I will have your license revoked! I will have your traveling privileges revoked!"

"So I find out some of your Regulators have been _kidnapping and selling children_ and all you care about is how it makes your department look." Alphard shook his head, "Wow."

"People rely on the Regulators to keep them safe! They trust them and this is going to be a threat to everything we've worked for! I want the name of the traitor, Black, and you're going to give it to me along with whatever else you've dug up!"

"Again, not going to happen."

Harry chuckled at the furious, outraged look on the man's face. "You don't want me as your enemy, Black. The ICW is a powerful ally and a dangerous enemy."

"It is. But you're not the ICW, Miller. Or have you forgotten that there's more to the organization than just your department?" Alphard adjusted his coat, "You want people to trust your group again, then maybe you should do things worthy of it instead of trying to threaten the one that exposed it."

Before the furious looking Miller could respond, Harry felt the tug of Apparation and he was soon back in the lobby of the building where Alphard's flat had been. The man nodded to the guard and went immediately to his flat, where both he and Harry froze.

The neat area was a complete and utter mess. Pillows were strewn everywhere and Harry could smell something like burnt food and vomit. What had happened?

As he heard a soft groan, one that made Alphard take out his wand and began to stride towards the sound, Harry followed to find out.


	7. Chapter 7

The groans and noises had Harry's hair standing up. He followed Alphard right to… a very disheveled looking half-asleep teenager, glass bottles all around him.

"SIRIUS ORION BLACK!" roared Alphard, the boy jerked awake and looking up through bleary yet horrified bloodshot eyes.

"Unnnnnncle….?"

Alphard looked ready to throttle him. "What on earth were you thinking?" he demanded, waving his hand and the room began to sort itself out. "You had a party. In my flat. I'm not even going to go into how rude it is to have such an event in someone's home and not invite them."

None of his words seemed to get through and the man frowned, going to the kitchen and rummaging for a few moments before returning with a dark orange potion. "Drink."

Sirius obeyed and sputtered as he drank. "That's horrible," he said, making a disgusted face.

"At least you're coherent now." Alphard sighed, looking concerned. "Sirius…"

"I know," grumbled Sirius, sighing. "I'm sorry. I won't do it again. I just…"

Alphard was very still, looking at Sirius very intently, as if the man was thinking quite hard. "Idle hands are the devil's workshop," he said finally. "You have nothing to do. So you're going to assist me with this case."

Sirius did a double take. "What?"

"What?" echoed Harry, surprised that such words would even leave the man's mouth. He was a father himself and though he could understand being disappointed at Sirius being so irresponsible, to take him on cases was insane. He just wasn't responsible enough nor did he know enough.

"It will be something to fall back on," said Alphard. "You'll be able to see a different culture and learn more about my field of work. Maybe being an investigator is something that'd appeal to you. The Potters can't take care of you forever…"

"He's just a kid!" protested Harry, thinking of the market that he had seen in Alphard's case involving beings being kidnapped and how he had felt after the international portkey and the Darker aspects in the Detcro.

But Sirius was looking surprisingly eager. "Really? I can go with you?"

"You have to obey my instructions," said Alphard sternly. "We'll be going to another country too. Customs are different."

Sirius nodded firmly, "I will. I'll go pack." The boy ran quickly, as if afraid Alphard would change his mind. Harry watched said man, who had gone into another room.

Harry followed and saw this was Alphard's bedroom; it was simple yet elegant. The bed was large and comfortable looking, with a wireless on the bedtable. There was a large bookshelf that took an entire wall. Despite the size, it was crammed with books and there were even stacks of books on the floor next to the bookshelf... but these didn't seem to be educational at all. They seemed to be for enjoyment; Harry could see books he recognized from Muggle writers.

" _Pack,"_ said Alphard boredly, a few sets of clothes neatly folding up and moving into a small briefcase. He took off his trenchcoat and began to clean it when a strange chime went through the flat. Watching Alphard raise an eyebrow, the man picked up the briefcase, folded his coat over his arm and went back into the living room.

He moved a sliding panel on the wall to reveal a small fireplace where a man's head was sitting. Harry did a double take; the man looked similar to himself, though older. He had messy hair that had long turned grey and haunted-looking hazel eyes but there was something about him, something that seemed so desolate and sad...

There was no denying the utter and absolute sympathy on Alphard's face. "Uncle Charlus."

"Alphard." The man stared at Alphard with those deadened eyes. "Have you changed your mind?"

"Uncle, it doesn't work the way you're thinking. There's nothing to change my mind about. They've moved on."

"But you can pull them back." Charlus seemed desperate. "You can. I've read the books. It can be done."

"It's unnatural," said Alphard very quietly, patiently. "Unnatural deaths like murder, they leave scars, leave paths that have not been solved and make the soul restless. Necromancy is about laying to rest, Uncle, and sometimes we pierce the Veil for this, yes, but it is still part of the Natural Order. Pulling someone back that has moved on is Unnatural-"

Charlus gave a laugh tinged with hysteria. "Unnatural. But it is natural for a child to die before their parent?"

Harry felt his heart ache while Alphard closed his eyes. The Auror had a strong suspicion he knew what was going on now. He couldn't imagine what losing one of his children would drive him to. Harry could imagine scouring the Forbidden Forest near Hogwarts for the Resurrection Stone he had left there so long ago.

"If they had been wronged, you know I would have immediately intervened. But they weren't wronged, Uncle. They weren't murdered."

"We are careful in our experiments in the Department of Mysteries, Alphard," said Charlus, looking determined. "Just listen to me, Alphard. Why would that accident have happened while my wife and son were there but not me? It was a plot, Alphard! They were murdered! It wasn't an accident!"

Alphard sighed, rubbing his temples. Harry felt a surge of sympathy for him. "I have a case that I'm leaving the country for. When I come back, if you still want me to look into it, I'll see. But if you're right Uncle, that means your department is going to be subjected to the same issues going on with the Regulators in the ICW. So if you think one of your Unspeakables is a double agent or something, you'd better look into it before I'm there." Alphard paused and frowned. "Where were you that day?"

"My brother was in the Ministry for a Wizengamot issue. I had gone up to see him but my son was talking to coworkers. Since Jonathan still hadn't figured out what he wanted to do, I thought that learning a bit more about our work might encourage him…" Charlus trailed off.

"Your brother. Fleamont Potter, right? Sirius's friend's father?"

Potter?

Harry looked at Charlus again. He had noticed how similar he and the man looked but he certainly hadn't expected this.

 _Unnatural. But it is natural for a child to die before their parent?_

Charlus had had a child and he was older than Alphard, who could have easily been Sirius's father. Even if Charlus's son was younger than Alphard, he would have been older than Harry. Looking at Charlus, Harry wondered what happened to the man.

But that meant the other man they had named… Fleamont, what a name… it meant he was Harry's grandfather. Charlus was related to Alphard… could he be related by marriage? Did that mean Harry and Sirius had been cousins of some sort?

He could see now why Ron had eschewed the old ways. Trying to keep track of who was related to whom was extremely difficult.

"Yes," Charlus had said, nodding before frowning as the front door slammed open once more and Sirius ran in, holding a backpack. "... Do I dare ask what's going on?"

"Great-Uncle Charlus. Hey…" Sirius looked awkward. "Are you… okay?"

Harry could see why both of them certainly seemed concerned for Charlus, but the man simply nodded, glancing towards Alphard. "Taking him with you can be dangerous."

"I think Sirius will be an asset in this case, if he learns to not be so reckless."

Sirius looked both proud and embarrassed while Charlus didn't seem so sure. "I'll see you after this case then." With that he was gone from the fireplace and the sliding panel replaced itself.

"Is he okay?" asked Sirius, looking concerned.

"He's in denial," said Alphard with a sad sigh. "He wants me to…" the man trailed off. "Well, you know aspects of my work."

"Do you get that a lot?" asked Sirius, curiosity all over his face.

Alphard hummed thoughtfully, "Honestly, it's really only after someone passes away unexpectedly. Now come on, let's grab this. We're going to be in a different country, so just remember things are probably different there."

Sirius nodded before furrowing a brow, "I thought you needed permission from the Ministry to travel to other countries."

"We have permission from the ICW," said Alphard. "But people travel all the time without telling the Ministry. It's difficult to enforce things like borders when there are bigger issues."

"Like what?" asked Sirius, Harry rather curious himself.

Alphard mused, "Well, like the Voldemort issue going on. The resources are going towards fighting the Death Eaters and keeping things quiet, not border enforcement. And honestly, with Apparation and different skill levels..." The Detcro chuckled, "If you use the techniques Regulators do, you could easily go on the run and be on a different continent. Find a leyline and just Apparate. If it's protected, just use an unregulated method."

"Like what?" asked Sirius, taking the other end of the Portkey.

"Brooms, winged horses that aren't registered, if you're one of those people that enjoys technomagic, you could always alter Muggle transport. I mean, Ministry frowns on it but what can they do?" Alphard gave a shrug. "Hold on."

Sirius nodded, tightening his grip once more and Harry winced as Alphard grabbed the portkey and activated it. It was just as bad as the other one.

Harry leaned against a wall and chuckled as Alphard looked over at Sirius, who had fallen over. "That was horrible!" said Sirius, shuddering.

A gentle chuckle made them all look over. "Many people say that," said a man who could only be their translator. "Hiroshi Sato."

"Alphard Black. This is my nephew, Sirius." Alphard was helping Sirius up as he introduced himself. "It's nice to meet you."

"The pleasure is mine, Detcro. Please, relax. We have a long way to go tomorrow."

Harry, hearing this, focused on leaving the memory and soon, he was back in Sirius's room in Grimmauld Place.

"Welcome back," said Ginny's voice from the doorway, making him look towards her. "I called you a few times but you were really absorbed in your book."

Harry gave an embarrassed shake of his head. "Sorry dear."

"It's fine. Mum is okay with watching Lily until we sort all of this out," said Ginny. "I'm going to get some sleep, my article is due early tomorrow."

Nodding, Harry watched his wife walk off before he sighed and went to the kitchen. He would get something to eat and then… his eyes moved towards the casebook that his hand rested on. Then he would finish this memory. He was very curious to see what happened though he suspected he already knew, since the office had that massive tank with the fish. Still, Harry wanted to know the details. That in mind, he began to make himself dinner.

* * *

 ** _A/N: Hello readers and my heartfelt apologies for interrupting your story as well as having a shorter AND later-than-usual update. Just to give a heads up that Chapter 8 will also, unfortunately, be delayed in being posted (travel+ no computer) so apologies in advance for that. Thank you all for your patience, your reading and, of course, your reviews!_**


	8. Chapter 8

Dinner was a quick meal. Harry was eager to return to the memory, after all. Ginny was already sleeping and so Harry settled into a comfortable chair and returned to where he had been.

Alphard and Sirius were both geared and ready, reminding Harry of Muggle backpackers. They were outside, following Hiroshi through a beautiful, isolated area. Harry found himself gazing around more than once; it seemed very peaceful here.

They were walking a long time, the only sound really being the birds, trees rustling or sound of an occasional body of water.

"How come we can't just Apparate or Portkey to the place?" asked Sirius as they moved through a forest. He was panting and though there was no path, the guide seemed to know his way.

"It is protected," said Hiroshi, sounding a bit out of breath himself. "Wild Magic."

Sirius looked confused, "Wild Magic?"

Harry had to admit, he hadn't heard of it either.

"It's magic that isn't controlled," explained Alphard, moving a branch out of the way. "Natural magic. Think of things like Dragons. Powerful and volatile. So we tread carefully in areas where Wild Magic is still strong. It's not as prevalent now, with people spreading out more and more into the areas that used to be wild, but... Well, magic is everywhere, really, if you know how to look for it." The man smiled at Sirius.

"Oh." Sirius furrowed his brow and shrugged.

Hiroshi chuckled, "We will stop shortly for a break, if the Detcro permits."

"That's fine," said Alphard, nodding, the smoked spectacles shielding his eyes but his devious grin was more than obvious. "The kid needs a break. He's delicate."

"Delicate?!" Sirius looked ready to protest but a growling made him turn bright red as he looked towards his stomach. "... Did you cast a spell?" He looked suspiciously at Alphard, who just laughed and continued walking after Hiroshi.

The man led them to a small ledge that was clear, overlooking a valley. "What we seek is below. The cliff is dangerous, so we will walk down and around."

Alphard nodded and Sirius moved to the ledge, looking over the valley. "Whoa!" He shaded his eyes from the sun. "Check it out!"

"After we have lunch," said Alphard, taking off his pack and removing a small metal box that he tapped with his wand. It opened, tossing out a large blanket followed shortly by serving dishes and plates and cups. Then Harry saw Alphard tapping the dishes with the strange white toothpick thing that Harry had taken from the desk.

Sirius had sat on the blanket at this point and was watching curiously. "What's that?" he asked.

"Bit of unicorn horn," explained Alphard, looking up. "Checks to be sure the food's okay to eat. If it's bad or poisoned or anything, this reacts and I'd pass. But it's safe."

"Do you check everything?" asked Sirius, looking surprised when his uncle nodded. "But that's just a bit… paranoid, yeah?"

Harry agreed with Sirius's assessment, but he was glad to know one of the things that he had taken to be analyzed. Unicorn horn… the Auror gave a soft sigh. He could put this to use right now. Paranoid or not, with the ICW putting invasive spells on him and his house, well, maybe being overly cautious was the right way of things. The last thing he needed was them to slip him a potion...

"It's possible to transfigure things," said Alphard quietly. "Even if you buy everything on your own. Given my career, there are no shortage of people that would happily end me. So I take precautions."

"Logical," said Hiroshi sitting near Alphard and also serving himself. Sirius sat down after Alphard made him a plate and the three ate. All too soon, they were finished and Alphard walked to where Sirius had been overlooking the area.

"This is beautiful," the Detcro said, giving a soft sigh and ruffling Sirius's hair as his nephew stood next to him.

"Yeah," agreed the boy, grinning. "The others are going to be jealous."

Hiroshi joined them and Alphard looked at their guide. "I'm guessing things will be more difficult in the dark?"

"Much more," said Hiroshi, with a nod. "But we can spare a few moments to appreciate beauty."

Alphard smiled and conjured a small camera for Sirius. "Here. Have fun."

"Thanks!" Sirius quickly snapped a few pictures, making Harry smile. Seeing his godfather so young and carefree was adorable but also heart wrenching. Alphard watched him, a fond smile on his face.

"He seems to be a fine young man."

Alphard nodded, "He is, though his parents will quickly disagree, fools that they are." He raised his voice, "Ready?"

Sirius turned back and snapped a photograph of his uncle and Hiroshi before nodding and following after them.

How long passed, Harry didn't know. The three had reached the valley they had been overlooking and were following what seemed to be a very busy stream. The sun was low in the sky and Harry could see the younger Sirius looked quite tired but the boy hadn't complained once. When Hiroshi finally stopped, Harry had to look to see why.

They were near a tiny abandoned house. Part of the small building was collapsed. It was trashed, beyond belief, not just vandalized but filled with trash up to Harry's knees in parts. Sirius looked dubiously at his uncle and Hiroshi.

"This will be fine for the night," said Alphard, flicking his wand. The trash was gone instantly. He flicked his wand at the collapsed area and it mended itself. Hiroshi was also waving his wand and soon, the windows were repaired and the lanterns clustered at the top part of the room began to glow.

The two entered, Sirius and Harry behind them. Even as Alphard flicked his wand at a small woodburning stove, Sirius shivered, rubbing his arms as he closed the door. Harry wasn't surprised; the warm evening was suddenly

piercingly, bitingly cold. Sirius froze, staring out the window.

"Uncle," he said, the tone in his voice making Harry turn and feel sickened. Though before he had been able to see the stream and trees, hearing the sound of said brook and various animals, now it was silent… and he could only see darkness. He could see the breath in the air from the cold.

Then he heard it; a long, hoarse rattling breath just as someone lit their wand, pointing it towards the window.

A towering, hooded figure was gliding smoothly there, hovering over the ground.

What was a Dementor doing there? Harry didn't know; there was no way it could be in another country. They were native to Azkaban.

"What…?" Hiroshi looked dumbfounded while Alphard was pale and Sirius shaking.

"T-That's a-a… a…"

"A Dementor," said Alphard, frowning. "They're native to Azkaban. So…" he didn't look pleased. "So someone sent this one."

"Can't you get rid of it?" asked Sirius, his dark gray eyes widening and amending, "Them?"

For two more Dementors had just joined the other one, and another two were on the other side of the small house. One slammed its scabby hand against the glass.

"Detcro?" asked Hiroshi, looking concerned and rubbing his head. "I hear… something…"

"I hear… shouting," whispered Sirius, shaking. "Do they have people out there? Can't you help them?"

"No. Dementors make you relive the worst moments of your life." Alphard frowned. "I can't perform a patronus."

Harry did a double take. What? He had seen the man raise a Shapeshifter, had seen him duel a Regulator and yet he couldn't produce a Patronus?

" _What?!"_ Sirius sounded just as stunned as Harry felt. "But you can… you've got to…"

"We sacrifice for our Art," said Alphard quietly. "We know this. Practitioners like myself… we cannot produce a patronus. Give me a moment."

Glass shattered and the gusts of icy wind blew out the fire in the woodburning stove.

"Detcro, we have to leave!"

"Uncle!"

"Don't move!" shouted Alphard. "And don't speak!"

It was too late, as the Dementors began to break more things to break in. Harry couldn't see, but he heard shouts and rustling… He lit his wand and saw Hiroshi being grabbed, Sirius kicking and clawing. A Dementor grabbed at Alphard and pressed its face to his.

And then someone struck, slamming the Dementor with such force that it flew back outside, through the wall of the small abandoned house. Someone else did the same for the Dementors around Sirius. Harry stared, confused for a moment. A woman stood there, as did a man. They were neither ghost, nor flesh. Less substantial than living bodies, but much more than ghosts, they pushed past the Dementors. Another creature slammed into the Dementors by Hiroshi, calling its loud hoot into the night.

Harry stared at them, wondering who they were, who they had been. The woman looked very much like Andromeda but the man…

The man looked so much like Hermione that it took Harry's breath away.

"How…" whispered Sirius, looking around. He didn't seem to see the two people. The two gave Alphard a fond smile and were gone, vanishing in the night. The creature, that Harry could see now was a regal eagle-owl, perched on Alphard's shoulder, preening his hair with its beak before it too vanished.

"What did you…" murmured Hiroshi, looking around. "Detcro, what did you do?"

Alphard waved his hand, looking around, frowning. "I called for help." Perhaps seeing the confusion, Alphard continued, "We cannot use a Patronus. But we do still have… loving bonds, happy memories. The same idea behind a Patronus, but outside of our realm."

"Who came?" asked Sirius, as Alphard waved his wand and everything packed up.

"They might come back," said Alphard. "We should move on tonight. And to answer your question… our great-great… well, you'd have another great…" He chuckled at the scowl on Sirius. "You know the tapestry. I'll simply say Aunt Isla and Uncle Bob have always been protective of family. And Rigel…" he sighed. "I miss that bird."

"Aunt Isla?" asked Sirius, quickly helping to pack up. "Who's that?"

Alphard smiled at his nephew, "She was disowned."

"I like her already," said Sirius, perking up and making Harry snort. His godfather _would_ like that.

"She married Uncle Bob, a Muggle. Not a Muggle-born, but a Muggle. He delivered to the Muggle homes near our ancestral house. This was long before I was born, but Great-Uncle Finny and Uncle Mari got along well with them. I know they had children but… well, you know how our family is." The man shook his head. "Let's get moving."

Hiroshi, pale and anxious-looking, just nodded and bolted out of the small house, reminding Harry very much of a scared rabbit.

"Uncle?" asked Sirius quietly.

"Hm?"

"How did Dementors get here? Who would send them?"

Alphard looked grim, "I don't know." He glanced towards the sky, Harry doing the same. It looked like a dark cloud was blotting out the moon, but he knew better. No doubt it was the Dementors, for the chill was still obvious in the night.

"We have to leave here," said Hiroshi. "Detcro, we cannot stay."

"We have to move forward."

"It is dangerous. We've performed too much magic. Do you not feel it?"

Sirius looked concerned while Alphard's mouth had set in a stern line.

"I'm moving on." Alphard said it simply.

"This is insanity, Detcro! I cannot advocate this!"

Before Alphard could reply, Harry felt a mild tremor as well in the ground.

"We have to leave."

Alphard shook his head.

Hiroshi looked at him and sighed. "Then we must part, Detcro. Follow the stream." He looked at Sirius. "Will you be joining me?"

Sirius shook his head even as another tremor rocked the ground. "I'm staying with my uncle."

The guide looked at the two and bowed his head. The two returned it and the guide turned and began to walk away. Alphard looked at Sirius, who looked back at him.

"You heard him," said Alphard with a sigh. "Follow the water."

Sirius nodded and the two continued walking, both looking towards the growing cloud in front of the moon. Harry felt sickened as the two walked, tripping over stones and branches. He noticed he wasn't the only one looking worriedly towards the group of Dementors.

"Have you ever performed a Patronus, Sirius?" Alphard asked it as they walked.

"Me? No," said Sirius, looking surprised. "I… I never had to before, you know?"

"The incantation is Expecto Patronum. You need to be focusing on something that makes you happy. The happiest memory. It doesn't have to be an event." Alphard stopped, indicating for Sirius to move ahead of him. "People can be your happiest memories too, the way they make you feel."

Sirius tilted his head as the two walked. "... Uncle, you said you can't do a Patronus."

"Indeed, I can't."

"Does… does that mean… Voldemort can't either? Or the Death Eaters? Or Grindelwald and his people?" Sirius looked very curious, very thoughtful.

"I'm not sure, to be honest." Alphard looked thoughtful, "Everyone has to have something to keep them from… from getting too lost. With the Dark Arts, there's always another level. Go too far and you lose yourself."

Sirius kicked a rock out of the way as they walked. "But you're not lost in the Dark Arts or anything. So you should be able to do one."

"I know what I've given up for my Art," said Alphard, glancing towards Sirius. "Some entities might have claimed that a few students at Hogwarts are unregistered, illegal Animagi."

The blush that overtook Sirius's features was priceless. Harry winced. "I…" Sirius trailed off.

"If you have that talent at this age, then I have no doubt that you will be able to manage a Patronus if we have need."

"I suppose you want me to register when we get back," mumbled Sirius glumly.

Alphard shook his head, surprising Harry. "No." He was silent a moment before he placed both hands on Sirius's shoulders, turning the boy to face him.

"Uncle?" asked Sirius, looking worried. "What's wrong?"

The sight reminded Harry of the times Sirius would talk with him. The same reassuring grip, the same serious look to show he was listening and thus expected the same in return.

How had Sirius known how to be a dutiful godfather? How had he known how to be a decent father figure despite not having a decent father?

Harry knew the answer now. Because Sirius _had_ had one. No doubt the same fears that plagued Harry had plagued his godfather as well.

"Listen to me." Alphard looked very grim and very concerned. "There are very dangerous wizards at home, Sirius. Dark, dangerous beings that have branded themselves in service to a mad man. And some of them… are very skilled." Alphard took a shuddering breath. "So whatever skills you have that will save your life… I want you to keep them secret as long as possible and I want you to learn even more."

"I will, Uncle." Sirius had no smile on his face, only the same somber expression as Alphard.

The man nodded and the two continued following the stream, which was beginning to grow wider and more wild. The trees were getting thicker.

"Do you think they're still here?" asked Sirius, glancing up.

"No doubt. All we can do is keep on guard. Do you want to stop?"

Sirius shook his head, "No. I've… I've stayed up all night before and gone to classes after. I'll be okay."

"Then we'll go straight on 'til morning," said Alphard, smiling fondly at his nephew.

They had indeed walked but it wasn't morning when they stopped; the thick icy mantle of darkness returned sooner than that and Harry heard a voice.

"Coy _koi_ fish," said a soft low voice in the night.

Harry heard a loud splash in the water and two yelps even as he heard the cloaks and Dementors sucking on the night.

" _Coy_ koi fish," cooed another voice once more, giggling.

"Great," muttered Alphard, sighing, lighting his wand tip. Sirius turned and Harry's jaw dropped. The water was bubbling, waves forming and Harry could see something was stirring.

" _Coy_ koi fish," said a voice, whistling.

"Uncle," said Sirius, his eyes widening. " _Lumos._ Uncle, look! Uncle!"

Harry looked at where Sirius was pointing and saw two fish jumping out of the water.

" _Coy_ koi fish!"

It was easy to see why Alphard wasn't turning, though; the cold was stronger and there was something massive rising out of the water. It reminded Harry of the Horntail he had flown around in the Triwizard Tournament… if the Horntail had had eight heads.

"Sirius, run!"

"Coy _koi_ fish!"

" _Accio fish!"_ Sirius shouted this as Alphard shoved him out of the way as the massive eight-headed creature lunged.

Water filled everything, a massive wave. Harry looked towards the two, positive they must have drowned, but there was something holding back the water.

"Detcro, run!" shouted a voice. Harry turned in surprise; it was Hiroshi. He had come back despite his fears. "The serpent! The Orochi! _Run!"_

" _Expecto Patronum!"_ Sirius was shouting but nothing was happening. " _Expecto Patronum! Expecto Patronum!"_

Alphard had made an orb to capture the two fish, along with a large part of their habitat, pushing it towards Sirius. "Go!" He pushed the boy towards Hiroshi. "Take Sirius and go!" He screamed it at the guide.

"Uncle!" shouted Sirius. Harry could hardly make sense of anything with the monster's thrashing and the Dementors flying all around. _"Expecto Patronum!"_

A faint whisp of silver that did nothing. Hiroshi grabbed Sirius, who tried to fight him off, and, his hand on the orb and on Sirius.

"Uncle Alphard! Uncle! UNCLE!" Sirius was screaming as he and the guide vanished just as the earth trembled.

Harry looked towards Alphard as the crowd of Dementors flew towards him, the Orochi lunging from the other way. He saw the man move his hand towards his face before…

No. Harry almost roared with laughter.

Alphard had just Vanished his mouth.

No Dementor would be able to Kiss him. The man turned, his wand moving in a furious few motions, a massive ring of fire surrounding him. It was powerful and dangerous; Harry knew it could only be fiendfyre. And yet it was fiendfyre unlike any he had seen before. Instead of the dragons and serpents and chimeras Harry was used to, this fire seemed made of beautiful animals, like stallions and phoenixes…

The Dementors tried to get away from the flames, which only rose higher, brighter in the cold night. The Orochi snapped its many jaws on a few of them and fell back into the water. It sounded suspiciously as if it were gagging. Perhaps the Dementors had made it sick.

As Harry watched, the flames from the spell joined the oncoming colors of dawn. Alphard looked around, as did Harry. Bodies of Dementors lay on the ground, the Orochi was back in the water. The Detcro tapped his face, his mouth reappearing, and he walked, binding a moving Dementor with light chains conjured from his wand.

"Who sent you?" asked Alphard, his eyes blazing red.

The response made Harry feel as if insects had crawled into his ear and were reproducing; there was something about the sound of the Dementor communicating that was… nauseating.

"I...C...W...," groaned the Dementor.

Alphard flicked his wand, the Dementor being hurled a long way, and turned. He paused a moment before taking out the unicorn horn and touching the water where the Orochi had been. The horn turned black and the Detcro frowned, moving from the water back to the ground. The horn turned a light gray.

"It wasn't the fish," muttered Alphard, sighing tiredly. "It's that thing in the water." Harry saw him performing a few complex wards and cleansing spells before frowning. Nothing had changed when he placed the unicorn horn back in. Slowly, the man muttered a spell and reached into the water.

He pulled out a stone the size of his fist; it was bright green, a sickly, pulsating green. The man slowly turned it over and Harry gave a sharp gasp.

The sign of the Hallows was carved into it.

Frowning, Alphard performed a few charms that Harry knew were determining the nature of the gem. When he touched the unicorn horn to the ground and water this time, it was cleansed.

Harry frowned at this; obviously whatever had been causing the effect was removed. Meaning it was the stone Alphard had now. But what was it?

The Detcro then Apparated, and Harry could see the abandoned small house. No one was there. Alphard frowned and Apparated again, this time to where they had stayed before. Harry could see the anxious Sirius and Hiroshi waiting. The guide was looking at the fish while Sirius was staring at the door.

Harry stared at the encasement around the fish… and did a double take.

He knew these fish; they were Alphard's fish, in the tank in his office.

"Uncle!" Sirius ran and hugged him tightly, Alphard doing the same thing, keeping a tight grip on him and looking over Sirius's shoulder at Hiroshi, who looked embarrassed.

"Thank you," said Alphard, looking at the man. "For coming back."

"I should not have left. It was dishonorable."

"You did the honorable thing in coming back," said Alphard. "And in saving my nephew. I've cleansed the area and warded the Orochi back in its lair, but I think a professional team needs to come out to remove it."

Sirius poked at the orb, "The fish can talk."

"... What?" asked Alphard, staring at him before looking at the fish. "What?"

"Hunnngry," said a fish.

"Uemashita," said the other fish.

Harry's jaw dropped and Alphard rubbed at his eyes and looked back at Hiroshi. "Is this… normal?"

When the guide shook his head, Alphard just sighed. "What do they eat?"

"Anything," said Hiroshi.

Alphard tapped the orb and a few small feeder fish appeared in it. "Let's report this to Intelligence," he muttered to Sirius. "The sooner, the better."

Sirius nodded and Alphard bowed his head to Hiroshi. "Thank you again."

The guide gave them both a bow and Alphard took out the international portkey. Gripping the orb and Sirius tightly, he activated it. They were gone and reappeared in a small office. It was a small, shabby but very neat office, with old, mismatched furniture and a few tomes along the wall.

Madison jumped, obviously surprised to see them and he smiled. "That was quick."

"It wasn't the fish," said Alphard. "But I brought them anyway." He frowned, staring at the Head of ICW Intelligence.

"What is it?" asked Madison, frowning at the stare.

"Someone from the ICW sent Dementors to where we were." Alphard said it flatly.

"That can't be." Madison's voice was very soft and low. "I didn't tell anyone you were being hired. All I did was request a portkey be made."

"Who made it?"

"One of the Regulators. I didn't give a reason or identity for the one using it."

Alphard frowned even deeper but Madison looked curiously at the orb. "So… it wasn't them?" When Alphard shook his head, the man sighed, "Well what was it then?"

"There…" Alphard trailed off and cleared his throat, "There was a creature there. An Orochi."

"An eight-headed underwater dragon. Lovely. Some of them _are_ poisonous…" Madison shook his head. "Well, thank you, Detcro. I'll forward the pay to your Gringotts account."

Alphard and Sirius just shared looks before Alphard nodded and left with his nephew and the orb with the fish. They had Apparated back to Alphard's office where the man had conjured up the fishtank Harry had seen before.

"Was it the Orochi that caused everything?" asked Sirius, looking very tired.

"I don't think so," said Alphard grimly. "I think it was this." The man pulled out the stone.

Sirius stared at it. "What is it?"

"No idea," admitted Alphard with a frown. "Might be tied to this marking…" as he pointed to it, another voice, the same voice that belonged to the fish, spoke.

"Sesshoseki," said a fish.

"Sesshoseki," repeated the other fish before hiding. The other fish did the same.

Alphard stared at them and Sirius snorted, "Coy koi fish," he said.

"Oh Merlin, another one," said Alphard with a good-natured chuckle. "Let's get some rest. I'll look more into this."

"And I'm going to practice the patronus," said Sirius with obvious determination.

"It's harder to conjure one when a Dementor's around," warned Alphard.

Sirius nodded, "I'll still learn it."

Harry left the memory, feeling too exhausted to move. He tucked the book into an inside pocket and forced himself to join his wife, not bothering to change into pajamas. All too soon, he was at work, exhaustedly staring at the piles of paperwork. He flicked his wand to sort them and decided he would get to them later.

For now, he was going to put a disguise on and walk around, listen to what was going on and see what would need action from the Auror department… and keep an eye out for any members of the ICW while he was at it.

His first stop would be Knockturn Alley.


	9. Chapter 9

Knockturn Alley was still quiet, many of the shops closed, long departed after the war against Voldemort. Harry often found issues outside of the city, in quieter areas.

He paused in front of the sign, the casebook in his robe pocket a reminder. Slowly, Harry did the same thing with his wand on the sign, spelling out his request. He was surprised; though decades had passed, as it had for Alphard, a door appeared. Harry opened it.

The dimly lit tunnel was still there. A breeze blew through, ruffling Harry's hair. He adjusted the magical bandana that hid his scar and the lenses that altered his eye color. He had learned long ago that for him, people tended to look for the famous scar, the messy hair and the eyes. Upon not seeing these, people glanced away after the first double take. In fact, people went out of their way to ignore him after the initial awkward staring.

And that was just how Head Auror Harry Potter wanted it.

The lift was still there, as ancient seeming as Harry had seen in the memories. He gripped the bar tightly and felt sick as it it seemed to just drop. Sparks flew and his feet left the ground a bit, but Harry said nothing. There were wards now, Harry noticed, powerful ones. He recognized a few; memory altering ones.

Once the lift ride had, at long last, finished, Harry left, taking a glance around.

It was very much like Alphard's memories had shown him, a bazaar full of stalls that sold all sorts of things. He walked around the perimeter and nearly flew backwards in the area where the lift had been to the lower levels was. Pain shot through him, a sharp jolt.

"Packs a sting, don' it?" asked a witch nearby, resting by her food cart. The sight and scent made Harry realize he hadn't eaten since dinner the night before. She was younger than him, making Harry nod as he slowly shook his head to clear it. Why wasn't she at Hogwarts? She certainly didn't seem familiar from any of the lessons he taught there recently, and she certainly couldn't have left school long ago.

"Yeah. What was that?"

"Old barrier," said the witch. "Rest of the Market was shut down ages ago. This is all that's left." She indicated the area. "From what I've heard, it's nothing compared to what the Market used to be."

"Well, some things are worth coming here for even now," said Harry, looking over the menu. It all looked very delicious, he had to admit.

She nodded, "Aye. And less stares. And well, y'know the Ministry…" She scoffed, "I can imagine if the Aurors got down here. Would raid the place just 'cause some people import stuff that the Ministry don't like even though they ain't even that bad."

"Seriously? But all you do is cook food that looks delicious," said Harry. "Oh, could I have the rendang, please?"

"Comin' right up." She soon gave him a heaping plate of rice, vegetables and a beef that practically made Harry's mouth dance with the spices and how it melted.

"Okay, why are you down here?" complained Harry instantly as he forked over his Sickles. The woman laughed. "I'm serious. You could run a restaurant!"

"Not really. Some things I use ain't exactly… y'know… allowed." She grinned, "Like the spice, yeah? Well, it's ruta." She gave a shrug, "It's a Trade B classified thing. But it's just lemongrass. It's so stupid."

"Rutas can be poisonous though," said Harry.

Another voice spoke, soft and hoarse, but polite, "Only if idiots are handling them. And Kyra here is far from an idiot."

Harry turned. A weedy-looking man stood there. He had shoulder-length light brown hair, so light it was almost a dark blond, pulled back in a loose ponytail and dark blue eyes that looked far older than their years. But, with a shock, Harry realized he knew this man, standing there in plain dark green robes. He had gone to school with this boy, shared classes; this was Theodore Nott.

Now that he was thinking about it, when was the last time anyone had even seen the man? He certainly hadn't. He hadn't even heard mentions of him, and that was… unusual. Everyone in their small class was fairly well-known now.

The young witch was blushing brightly, suddenly quite shy. "Hi Mr. Nott."

The man gave a slight smile, but though it was friendly, even Harry had to admit, the man didn't seem well. The dark circles under his eyes spoke to lack of sleep. The thinness around his face and hands made Harry wonder if he ate much.

"Hello," said Theodore Nott. He glanced at Harry, "Don't try and have my vendor leave. She'll make me have to deal with _people_ if she leaves here."

The girl giggled, "Mr. Nott, your usual."

"Thank you, dear."

Harry noticed the man's plate was extremely large. He paid far more than the meal was worth, a few Galleons, waving away the girl's attempts to give him change.

As he moved towards a small stool, the vendor called after him.

"Oh! Mr. Nott, that weird stuff you were looking at, there's more of it."

Immediately, Nott's head jerked up, "Oh? You saw it?"

"Yeah, right over in Johnny's stall."

"I'm… I'll be right back. Don't let your new guest steal my food." The man grinned and was off, making Harry curious, very curious. He itched to follow but knew, with the young witch turning her attention back to him, that it would be noticed.

He sat at another stool and continued to eat his meal, noticing when Nott returned. There was no bag visible on him, but Harry had a shrewd suspicion whatever the man bought was on his person.

"Delicious as always, Kyra. You're an angel." The man continued to eat and Harry sighed. One case at a time. He had to deal with the ICW for now. But given that Nott seemed to be a regular here, he could certainly track the man again when this business was finished.

A look through all of the stands showed things that Harry certainly wasn't comfortable with being sold. Various poisons, other tradable substances that regulations and licensing needed to be followed for…

The Auror decided to keep tabs on things. A raid wouldn't be necessary if they could simply track the merchants and buyers. Most of the things certainly weren't _too_ horrible, some weren't even illegal, though Harry knew, as he passed a booth of tantric supplies, they were quite taboo.

He left the Market. No one seemed to be following him, which was a welcome relief. He returned to the office, a bit more energetic, trying to think. He sat at the Head Auror desk, thinking.

Sirius had marked those dates for a reason. And the Regulators wanted an artifact…

 _Think, Potter, think._ Harry closed his eyes, trying to make the connection. Perhaps it was due to his constant practice from chasing criminals or solving various mysterious throughout his life, but the connection dawned on him.

The Sesshoseki. It had had the mark of the Hallows, but most of the world didn't think of it that way. He could remember Viktor Krum's reaction to Luna's father's chain… Thinking of Xenophilius made Harry make another mental note to pick up a Quibbler. Certainly, it wasn't the most _sane_ read, but he had a certain fondness for the tabloid.

That stone had been responsible for the case the Verboten had sent Alphard on. But he hadn't mentioned it. In fact, the necromancer had said it was that dragon that caused it… but Harry had seen the memory. It had been the stone.

People had been dying.

Could that be the artifact the Regulators were seeking? But if it were doing no harm; and certainly, if deaths were happening again, especially here, Harry knew he would have heard of it, then why seek it now?

"Working hard or hardly working?" asked a voice, bemused. Harry looked up to see Hermione in his doorway.

"Hey," he said, shaking his head. "Just… thinking about this mess I'm in. What about you? Anything fun and exciting with the administrative part of the office?"

She gave an exasperated but amused sigh, "Harry, one day you'll have to do your paperwork."

"Waste of time and we both know it," countered Harry. "Besides, if it were _that_ bad, Robards would tell Shack who'd tell me."

"And you'd ignore them both," said Hermione, shaking her head. "What has you so stumped?"

"Just everything with the ICW," said Harry.

The small nod and look of concern showed how the years had changed them all. It made Harry ache a little bit for the naive children they had once been. Once upon a time, they had had faith in authority, in people above them… and that had shattered when they had still been children themselves. The Ministry crumbling, showing the corruption… they fought the remnants of that poison even now.

"I admit, I'm concerned as to what possible thing the ICW could want from someone who's been dead for decades," said Hermione quietly. "If it were so essential…"

"That's what I'm wondering." Harry frowned, "What are they up to?"

"That's the question, isn't it?" Hermione gave a soft huff. "Whatever you think's best Harry, you know I'll support it. Ron too."

Harry smiled, "Thanks." He paused as Hermione stood up, "Hey, question. Not related to this."

She looked back at him, obviously curious.

"You know pretty much what happened to everyone in our year, right? Where they went after Hogwarts. Especially people related to Death Eaters, with all the rumors and everything…"

"Yes…"

"You know what Theodore Nott's doing now?"

Hermione looked taken aback at this, "That's a name I haven't heard in a long time…" She frowned, thinking. Harry didn't like the blank she seemed to be drawing. "Is he even alive? I know his family had a manor house like the Malfoys but… but I don't know much else about him. Just that his father died in Azkaban."

"I saw him today. In a place that was pretty shady. He bought something too. Maybe I'll look into it."

"Well, just don't bite off more than you can chew."

Harry nodded and Hermione left. He debated a moment before following suit, Apparating to Alphard's office, he looked around it once more. He sent a Patronus to Grimmauld Place for Ginny and sat down in the chair that had once been the Detcro's.

"Back again, Potter?" asked a voice from the wall. Harry turned to see Phineas looking at him.

"Yes."

"You've been here a lot. Is there something my great-grandson had that interests you?" The portrait raised an eyebrow pointedly.

Harry sighed, "No, not exactly. It's the ICW."

"Ugh. Say no more. That organization is useless. You have no idea how difficult they made things."

This made Harry sit up, looking at the portrait keenly. "... What do you mean? What things?" Had Hogwarts had a difficult time getting accreditation?

"... When you were younger, when Severus Snape was Headmaster," said Phineas, giving Harry a look as if daring him to comment about the long dead man, "he tried contacting them. Repeatedly."

A strange chill went up Harry's spine.

' _ICW accreditation means instant assistance if the school opts to request it.'_

Harry remembered Dumbledore had told Alphard that. He had been frustrated that Severus Snape hadn't sought it. "But the ICW accreditation means assistance if the school requests it…"

"Now you see why I said they're useless," said Phineas. "He wanted them to examine the history classes and to try and certify the Dark Arts classes. Hogwarts charter distinctly states no Dark Arts, only the Defense thereof."

"Who did he write to?" asked Harry slowly, thinking. "Did he get a name?"

"I think that since it was international and given the changes in policies going on, he had to inform law enforcement and education," said Phineas. "Don't waste your time with them."

Harry closed his eyes. Law Enforcement was coming back up again. This time, denying a school assistance. Why? Who would benefit from that? They certainly had been willing to work with Harry regarding the Dementor issue…

If his suspicions were right, ICW's Law Enforcement wanted the Sesshoseki. Why, Harry had no idea. Where said item was, Harry also had no idea. He glanced towards the fish, who were swimming happily. Though they had spoken in the memories he had observed, they had been silent thus far.

He didn't know if they could say a lot. So better to focus on what he knew. Alphard had feared corruption. Dumbledore's portrait had basically confirmed it. That meant Harry was dealing with a department that had been very corrupt and wanted an artifact that Harry knew was capable of death.

An item that had had the hallows insignia. A mark most of the world thought was Grindelwald's mark.

Harry frowned, thinking. When Alphard was alive, Grindelwald would not have been that long before. Voldemort was not the infamous wizard he would be known as at that point. Which meant that his followers would have still been out there, just as surely as Voldemort's followers were still in hiding even now.

"Did they say why they didn't come?" asked Harry, wondering about it.

"Just kept saying they'd come as soon as possible," said Phineas, rolling his eyes. "You got there before them."

Though disturbed at the thought, Harry nodded and turned his attention back to the casebook, opening it on the desk.

"Potter?"

Harry looked up at the portrait.

"A… word of warning, if you will." The portrait looked saddened. "Don't live in memories."

"Thank you." Harry paused slightly. "Do you know anyone that would have wanted Alphard dead?"

"Well, you're in Law Enforcement. You should know that answer. Long list." The portrait indicated the files and the like still around. "I've told you, he wouldn't have been poisoned or anything."

"Someone else didn't think Alphard's death was from natural causes," said Harry quietly.

The portrait rolled his eyes, "He was found in his flat."

"Who found him?"

"I only heard about his death through my worthless great-great-grandson. I do wish he had learned more proper methods from Alphard. Alas, it is my fate to suffer due to relatives. Adieu, Potter."

With that, Phineas was gone. How the portrait managed to make Harry irked and feel quite foolish every time they spoke, the man couldn't fathom. It was frustrating.

Flipping open the casebook once more, Harry turned to the second date marked with an asterisk. He looked around; Alphard was outside the office, opening the door… and the necromancer froze in the doorway.

It was obvious why.

Dolohov was reclined on the sofa, glancing towards the fish tank. "Never knew you for having pets. Thought you were an one owl man."

"Get out. And what did you do to that poor portrait?!" Alphard strode into the room, looking upset. Harry could see a massive black shadow covering where Phineas's portrait normally sat.

"I didn't want interruptions."

"Get out of my office! I've told you I'm not interested!" Alphard's hands clenched and unclenched, as if he wanted to do nothing more than throttle Dolohov.

Harry felt he would have cheered the man on.

Instead of moving, Dolohov boredly flicked his wand towards the door, slamming it shut. "The rumor mill said you had Dementors chasing you."

Alphard said nothing.

Dolohov sat upright, frowning. "Well?"

"I see no reason to waste my breath speaking at you, since you don't listen." Alphard sat down in his chair and turned abruptly towards his file box, grabbing one that seemed to be at random. He took out a fountain pen, to Harry's surprise, and began to write furiously in the margins of the different items within the file.

"Only Azkaban island has Dementors, Alphard." Dolohov's voice was soft and low. "That means either someone here did it or someone with enough authority had it done."

The necromancer ignored the other man.

"They won't be an issue anymore." Dolohov sat in the chair across from the desk. "I convinced… someone… that they would be a benefit."

Alphard froze, mid-word. He slowly looked up, his eyes blazing red.

"I do not need you or your master's assistance. For the last time, get out of my office."

"That pride is going to be your downfall, Alphard." Dolohov said it quietly. "If you won't listen for yourself, then maybe you should listen for your nephew's sake."

The pen was dropped faster than Harry had thought and Alphard's wand was directly in Dolohov's face, the necromancer on his feet.

"Did you just make a threat towards-"

"Do you think me that stupid?"

"Well, looking at that arm-"

"Do you have to keep harping on that?!" Dolohov pushed the wand out of his face. "What did you do to get the ICW to spur such actions against you?"

"You're acting as idiotic as I know you are. No doubt you've read the news. What do you want, Antonin? Why are you really here?" Alphard sank back into his chair.

The Death Eater scowled, "I told you. I wanted to ask about the Dementors."

"And?"

"And to let you know if it was true, that you didn't have to worry. But if you're going to keep running around the world without allies, you're being foolish."

"Duly noted. Leave."

"What's with the fish, anyway?" Dolohov peered at the fish tank. "They hid the minute I came in."

Alphard's lips twisted slightly, "They're coy koi fish."

"Why would you repeat…" Dolohov shook his head, "I don't want to know. I really don't. Just… be careful."

"Or what, you'll come to my office to warn me again?"

Dolohov stared at him for a moment. "At least I'm not foolish enough to go against the ICW on my own. If you're going to do that, at least get input from people who've done it."

Alphard stared at him, "What are you talking about?"

"Think about it. Who's the only person alive right now that held their own against the ICW?" Dolohov waved his hand, as if indicating Alphard should know this. "I think you should get some input. See ways to avoid them, make sure they can't set Dementors after you. They failed. You think they won't try again?"

Alphard frowned. "Absolutely not. Dealing with what we have here is bad enough. Seeking out the only wizard as Dark as Riddle-"

"Because _you're_ one to say something about anyone being Dark," snorted Dolohov.

"Har har," said Alphard. "What do you care anyway?"

Dolohov said nothing a moment before saying with a shrug, "You know why. You might not agree with my choice but you're too well known to keep what you do quiet for too long."

With that, the Death Eater left the office. Alphard sighed and glanced towards the black void over the portrait. He glanced around the office and pulled out the Sesshoseki from his pocket. He flipped it over, staring at the symbol etched into it.

Harry watched as the man reached into his pocket once more and pulled out thick sheets of metal. It was far thicker than foil and Alphard had to use magic to shape it. It completely covered the Sesshoseki. The man flicked his wand and runes began to appear in the thick metal. They flashed, a bright red light reminding Harry of lava, and it was gone.

After slipping it back into his pocket, Alphard stood and went to the door, waving his hand at the black void over Phineas's portrait. The portrait was returned to normal and the Detcro shut the door, Harry with him.

He was expecting Alphard to Apparate but the man didn't. Instead, he walked before taking Muggle transportation. Harry was surprised by this for a number of reasons. Firstly, he remembered the difficulties people like the Weasleys had had with non-wizarding money and the like. Secondly, given the family that Alphard was from, the Auror certainly didn't think the Detcro would know the Muggle world at all, let alone well enough to take the Underground.

But he did. Where were they going?

As they moved through the crowd, a flash of realization went through Harry's mind. Of course. Wizarding people couldn't keep up in the Muggle world, using Muggle methods. It was why Alphard was doing it; to throw off anyone that would be tracing his footsteps, anyone attempting to follow him. It was simple, absurdly so, and yet it made perfect sense.

They stopped at long last, but Harry didn't know the area. He knew it was a nice area, to say the least, but they were in front of a bank. It seemed to be a Muggle bank, for well-to-do people. Alphard entered the building, the glass doors and brick outside a stark contrast to Gringotts.

And then Alphard walked to the back, talking quietly to a worker. Soon they were seen to another part of the bank, where safety deposit boxes were.

Harry stared in surprise as the worker left and Alphard simply opened up a box and placed the Sesshoseki there. The necromancer tapped the interior of the safety deposit box with his wand. Runes appeared within it, flashing blue before fading. The man closed the safety deposit box before casting a Notice-Me-Not charm on the safety deposit box. Harry understood that part; no one would bother looking at it. Alphard tapped it with his wand, causing more runes to appear, but these were ones Harry knew; they were acting as a secondary Notice-Me-Not charm in case the spell failed.

And with that completed, Alphard left the Muggle bank, taking Muggle transportation to another part of the city before he Apparated back to his flat. But he paused at the door, his mouth agape.

The flat, as Harry saw, was completely ruined. And this time, as Alphard inspected everything, there was no teenaged Sirius to blame. So who had done this? And why?

Alphard sighed, frowning severely as he rummaged through his pocket, taking out that odd bone knife Harry had seen at his desk before. He touched it to the wall and Harry saw it shift colors, from the off white to a dark black.

Immediately, the Detcro left the flat, closing the door behind him. He leaned against the corridor wall, breathing in deeply. A few moments later, he left the building, returning to his office. The man hadn't even sat down when there was a knock on the door.

"Come in," said Alphard tiredly.

Harry saw the expression change when it opened, revealing Charlus. "I called at your flat but you weren't home," explained the man. "I had a proximity alert for when you'd be back but when I called it was a wreck."

"Yeah. There were sensory spells all over," explained Alphard. "I'll take them down later. How are you doing, Uncle?"

"The same. Do you have a moment to come to the Ministry?" Charlus sighed, seeing the look on Alphard's face. "I am aware of what you think. I just want you to look. That's all."

"Fine," said Alphard, looking sympathetic. "Lead the way."

With that, once more, the Detcro left his office, Harry with him.


	10. Chapter 10

This certainly brought back memories. Harry stared at the Atrium in the memory, shaking his head. That fountain had been destroyed decades ago.

"Charlus!" called someone, making the man turn with a tired sigh.

"Go ahead," said Alphard to his uncle. "I'll wait."

Charlus gave him a suspicious look but nodded and walked off. Harry followed Alphard to the fountain and he chuckled as he watched the Detcro toss a few Galleons into the water.

"Generous," said a voice and Harry gave a sharp gasp of surprise. Ted Tonks stood there, grinning at Alphard. "I was told I have you and Sirius to blame for Dora's new fascination with tie-dyed things."

Alphard laughed, "You can blame Sirius entirely. His sense of style is… well, let's just say I've never seen anything like it."

Ted shook his head, "I have, when I visit my parents. Quite a few Muggles are fond of it. Some musicians started it and well…" the man gave a chuckle, "What brings you to the Ministry?"

"Looking into something for my uncle." Alphard sighed, shaking his head. "And what brings you here?"

Ted glanced around and lowered his voice, "There's been a spike of werewolf attacks lately."

Alphard frowned. "I didn't hear about that."

"It hasn't hit the papers yet, but you know it's only a matter of time," muttered Ted darkly, the splashing of the water and loud murmuring noise of the hundreds of people moving to and fro at work covering his words so Harry could hardly hear him. "Crouch asked for an astronomer to come in, wanted to see if any celestial bodies could've been interfering with the moon, maybe make them more… volatile. Basically… looking for any other excuse besides the obvious reason."

"You got the short straw, then?"

"Uh-huh," said Ted unhappily. "When I told him that it wasn't the case, he wasn't happy. Shouted that I was just trying to incite panic and I don't know anything about moonbeams, I probably confused the moon with the sun… and well, other less polite things.."

"I bet. Crouch has a temper. Can't imagine how that poor son and wife of his deal with it..." Alphard looked towards the fountain, obviously lost in thought. "If they're attacking more… the giants were attacking more… Dementors too…"

"You think it's… _him_? That he got the werewolves too?" Ted pulled at his collar anxiously, "That wizard, the one who's… you know, trying to kill off all of us Muggle-borns. Voldemort, they call him. Him and his Death Eaters."

Alphard's hand clenched. "...Yes. Knowing him, he would have them on his side."

Harry could see Ted's astonished look. "Knowing him-wait. Alphard, d-do you _know_ him? I mean, I know what you do but… but if he's... he's doing stuff like this…"

"If it's who I think it is, we went to school together," said Alphard quietly. "But he isn't exactly a friend."

"Who-"

"There you are." Charlus had returned. He frowned at Ted, who had fallen silent. "You're the astronomer that was called in by Law Enforcement. Is there anything you need?"

"Was just talking to Alphard," said Ted.

Alphard cleared his throat, "Uncle, this is Andromeda's husband. Ted, this is my uncle Charlus."

"Nice to meet you," said Charlus, though he was already tugging Alphard away. "Good day."

"Yeah, see you," said Ted, staring after them as they went to the lifts.

They were silent until the lift was empty. "You're upset." Charlus said it simply. "Was I too rude to the astronomer?"

"A bit, but that's not what I'm thinking about," said Alphard quietly. "Ted was telling me there's been a rash of werewolf attacks."

"Has there?" Charlus sighed, looking frustrated. "I've told Crouch to stop keeping secrets from us other directors. That man…"

"Yes, well, that aside… if Riddle is building up an army of skilled witches and wizards and other beings…" he shook his head, "Things are already bad. We don't want another Grindelwald."

"... We've had that same concern in my department," said Charlus quietly. "My fears are that the Ministry has been infiltrated."

Harry gave a sad look to his great-uncle. The man was right. He knew that much now and hoped fervently it wasn't the case any more. Kingsley had done a lot of anti-corruption cleaning up and it had taken years…

"Have you told others?" asked Alphard sharply.

"Do you think they're willing to listen?" retorted Charlus. "They just want to pretend things are okay, that their measures are working…" he trailed off, shaking his head.

The two were silent as they exited at the last level, heading to the Department of Mysteries. Harry found himself scowling when the room spun, the blue neon lights glaring in the dark.

They walked through one of the doors, passing a place Harry recognized. The archway where he had heard whispers, where Sirius had…

He closed his eyes. Thinking about his godfather's last moments hurt even now.

Charlus was standing there as well, a pained expression on his face as he looked desperately at Alphard. Unspeakables passed by, averting their eyes or giving sympathetic looks to Charlus.

"Don't you hear them?" his voice was soft and low, but Harry could hear the desperation in it.

Alphard sighed, resting his hand near the archway. He closed his eyes.

The last time, Harry had heard soft, faint whispers. But that wasn't what Alphard could hear, obviously. Harry could hear laughter, joy, warmth and peace radiating in the massive babble of voices that seemed to flutter by his ears.

And then it slowed… stopped...

" _Detcro!"_ It was a scream from the multitude, jerking them to attention.

Harry jumped, as did Alphard, just as Charlus stumbled, obvious signs of a trip jinx having been used evident even to Harry as he fell.

"Uncle!" Alphard was grabbing for the man, desperate and quick, grabbing the hem of Charlus's robes. Shouts rang out as the audible rip of clothing echoed through the area and Charlus fell through the veil. "No!" Alphard made to run through the dias and arms grabbed him.

"No, Detcro," said a kind voice, a man with graying hair dragging Alphard away.

" _Get off me!"_ Alphard was struggling but the man wouldn't let him go. "Uncle! _UNCLE!"_

"Rookwood, you heard the Detcro, get off of him!" shouted a short, slender man with hair that was more silver than black even as he ran to the veil, stopping just in front of it. "Director… Charlus…"

"Croaker, there was a jinx!" Alphard was shouting. "No one leaves this department! _No one!"_ The man whirled on his heel. "I want every person in this department in that entrance in five minutes time." He began to leave.

Croaker chased after him, "Where are you going?"

"I'm telling Law Enforcement there was a murder on the premise," snapped Alphard, leaving the Department of Mysteries.

A few moments later however…

"There was no murder committed in the Ministry!" Crouch was shouting this, spittle flying from his mouth.

"I am _telling_ you, there was one committed a few minutes ago in the Department of Mysteries," said Alphard, his hands clenched tightly. Harry could see the nails biting into the man's skin. "My uncle,the _director_ of said department, is _dead._ "

"Impossible. You said he tripped."

"It was due to a deliberate jinx."

"What is the problem here?"

Harry turned. A stocky man with short gray hair stood there, in navy blue robes. He had a very stern appearance, making Harry think he was not a man to cross.

"Minister Minchum," both Alphard and Crouch said.

"I heard the shouting when I was passing by," said the Minister of Magic. "What's happened?"

"Nothing to be concerned with, sir," said Crouch.

Alphard scowled at him before turning to Minchum. "There was a murder on the premise."

"There was no murder!" shouted Crouch.

"I was there, Crouch!"

"Okay." Minchum's voice was soft and quiet but it cut through. Harry glanced at the man, who was looking between the two. "Who was the victim?"

"Charlus Potter."

Minchum frowned, "I saw him earlier."

"It just happened. Someone used a trip jinx to kill him by sending him into a… highly experimental… item in the Department of Mysteries." Alphard cleared his throat.

"Don't be ridiculous," snapped Crouch. "What were you even doing there?"

"A question usually asked whenever Detcro Black is involved," said the disembodied voice of a Regulator, making Alphard close his eyes and give a patient sigh before turning. Harry had already done the same, seeing Miller there, flanked by two Regulators.

"What are you doing here?" snapped Minchum, surprising Harry. "I've told you lot before that we don't need international assistance with this issue! Get out!"

"You can't order us out, Minister," said Miller coolly. "We are looking into an inquiry regarding some creatures native to the United Kingdom. Apparently some managed to cross international borders. Got all the way to _Japan_. Imagine that. Dementors, supposedly."

Minchum gave a huff of exasperation, "You people are a piece of work. Of all the claims, you expect me to-"

"We have the paperwork. There were witnesses. But of course, an accusation of murder from an ICW appointed investigator, well… that catches our interest as well."

Harry frowned. Miller was looking anything but helpful. Alphard's hands were clenched so tightly that Harry could see blood seeping from his palms. "I am more than capable of investigating this crime without assistance."

"Oh no, Detcro. We'd be happy to provide you with extra… authority. Go on, Regulator." Miller glanced at the one to the left of him. "Lead the way. We'll follow. The Department of Mysteries."

"You can't just come in here and give orders," snapped Minchum, looking ready to hurl epithets and hexes.

Miller raised both eyebrows, "So you don't want assistance into looking into a murder of one of your directors. Goodness… perhaps the situation is worse here than you're implying, Minister. I daresay we should inspect-"

"There wasn't a murder!" Crouch looked ready to throw his desk.

"I'm sure Mr. Crouch, as head of Law Enforcement here, knows what he's talking about," said Miller, nodding to the man. "But well… if it satisfies the Detcro, we'll be glad to give a second opinion."

Minchum's lips had curled, reminding Harry of a dog. "I'm getting Dumbledore. You ICW people should be reporting to him anyhow."

"You do that, Minister. While you do, we'll look into the Detcro's claims. Lead the way."

Harry had a sinking suspicion that this wasn't going to end well. A few minutes later, his foreboding proved correct. Only a few moments later, Miller was at the scene, with all the Unspeakables gathered.

"I see no trace of Dark spells," said the man idly.

"It was a trip jinx," said Alphard coldly. "And if you'll do traces for that-"

"It wouldn't be as effective," said Miller. "Too much magic in the air and surrounding area. It could be anything."

"It was a trip jinx. No one has used magic since the murder. Looking at the last spells performed will reveal the culprit." Alphard sounded as if he were trying his best to be patient.

Miller shook his head, "Goodness no, Detcro. You can't presume everyone is guilty. You have to prove your case. This was obviously a tragic accident. No trace of spells, no immediate suspects… it seems your work is sloppy."

Harry felt the urge to hex the man into oblivion. Alphard's eyes had gone completely red, reminding Harry very much of Voldemort.

"Well, seems this case is closed," said Miller with a grin. "Goodness. Apologies for the interruption, everyone. Good _day_ , Detcro Black."

And with that, the man left. The Unspeakables began to work once more, except for Croaker, who walked to Alphard, shaking slightly, looking just as angry.

"He can't be serious." The man's voice was soft. "Alphard, we both know this was murder. They killed Charlus, here in the Ministry. Under our noses, they did it… and the ICW's letting them. This is because you exposed their horrible actions, I know it is. Will Law Enforcement launch an actual investigation?"

"I'm going to Dumbledore." Alphard said it quietly. "And no. Crouch refuses to believe me."

"No." The man shook his head. "No. No…."

"... Croaker, be careful."

"You as well, Alphard."

Harry left the memory. His insides were pulsing with rage. Miller was a brilliant idiot. Unleash the Dementors on Alphard, have an excuse to enter a country that obviously didn't want him there and…

He could have had a great-uncle. The thought of another family member being there for him growing up made Harry ache. A murder covered up… a huge scandal… and all tied to Alphard.

Phineas's portrait was empty and Harry sighed tiredly. He was hungry and still frustrated over something that had happened before he was even born. Sighing, the man left the office, getting something to eat before going to Grimmauld Place. Ginny had left him a note apologizing for having an early night. She had to go to a Quidditch game tomorrow morning and then would be editing her columns.

Harry frowned, sitting in an armchair and thinking once more. Gagnon was no doubt going to be after him once more. And seeing how low the ICW went before to target someone… that meant his family could be in danger. He pulled open the casebook.

It was going to be an all-nighter, no doubt. But he needed the knowledge that Alphard had held. Perhaps there was something, anything, Harry could use to get the ICW away from him. Alphard had placed the Sesshoseki in a safe place and no deaths had happened, nothing odd… Harry was positive that the artifact was probably safest right where it was.

If the ICW, with all of their resources, hadn't found it, the only other person who could have found it was Sirius. And Harry knew his godfather; the man wouldn't have touched something Alphard made sure was safe. What use would Sirius have for something that caused only death? None. All he would've done was check to be sure it was safe still.

Which meant another lie.

 _"Intel states that the Detcro is believed to have the last known whereabouts of a powerful but extremely dangerous Commander seeks to ensure the object is found and placed in a safe, secure location."_

That had been what the Regulator had claimed. Except the artifact was _in_ a safe, secure location.

So why did Gagnon _really_ want it? And he didn't want the actual artifact, even… Harry suspected he could even give the man the Sesshoseki and he wouldn't want it.

He would want the casebook. Of that, Harry had no doubt. Which meant there was something in it. But what, he had no idea. Sighing, no longer hungry and much calmer, Harry returned to the memory he had left, hoping it would offer insight.

Alphard had apparated to Hogsmeade. He walked up the road, pausing by the tall stone pillars topped with winged boars on either side of the gate to the school grounds. Harry was surprised it was closed and padlocked shut.

"I am an idiot," muttered Alphard to himself, huffing a tired sigh. "Didn't even think to call…" he looked around before shrugging and knocking on the gate.

A few moments later, Harry could hear Dumbledore's voice. "Hello?"

"Sorry," said Alphard apologetically. "I should have called. It's Alphard Black, Dumbledore. I was hoping to speak with you."

"Certainly," said Dumbledore's voice. The padlock immediately opened and the chains loosened, allowing the door to open. Alphard entered and Harry glanced back to see the security immediately returning. The man hurried across the grounds and into the Entrance Hall, where Dumbledore was waiting.

The man took one look at Alphard and immediately paled. "To the office, I think."

Alphard said nothing, following behind the man. Harry glanced at him, wondering what would get such a reaction. The Detcro looked the same as he had in the Ministry.

Harry had a second to appreciate Dumbledore's interesting office before the man shoved a goblet at Alphard. "Drink," said Dumbledore, his tone offering no argument. As Harry watched, Alphard touched the goblet with the bit of unicorn horn. Nothing happened so the man took a sip.

"Calming draught, really?" muttered Alphard, though Harry could see color returning to him and his eyes flickering back to normal immediately. He continued to drink the potion, Dumbledore frowning.

"What happened?" the man asked it quietly.

Alphard closed his eyes and murmured softly, "My uncle was killed in front of me, Dumbledore. Uncle Charlus. And _Miller,_ " here the man's eyes flashed red despite the calming potion, "happened to be in the Ministry. He basically stated that it was an accident despite everyone knowing it was murder and wouldn't allow me to investigate."

"Crouch will lead his own investigation."

"No, he won't. He refuses to believe a murder would happen in the Ministry," said Alphard. "Uncle was worried it was infiltrated. Dumbledore, I… I think he was right. I think Death Eaters are in the Ministry."

Dumbledore closed his eyes tiredly, "I had long suspected this was the case. One can always hope…" he shook his head. "I see. Thank you. Was that all?"

Alphard shook his head, "No. I wanted to see you so you could grant a request, actually."

"Certainly, if it is in my power. What is it?"

The Detcro was silent a moment before murmuring, "I would like authorization for a visit with Grindelwald."

Harry could see that Dumbledore certainly hadn't expected _that._ The man's face was devoid of any and all emotion, a completely blank slate.

Finally, the man spoke quietly, "Why would you want to visit him?"

Alphard gave a wry grin, but Harry could see he wasn't really amused. "Name another person that took on the ICW and is able to talk about it."

The elderly headmaster frowned, "Alphard, surely you don't consider yourself an enemy of the ICW."

"Dumbledore, they set Dementors after me, are constantly trying to undermine me and now won't even allow a murder investigation because of what I exposed. I think that if there is anyone that can understand the severity of the threat they represent to me and my loved ones, it'd be him."

Harry could only imagine the situation Dumbledore was imagining. He knew about how the two had been friends, after all.

"Grindelwald is an extremely manipulative man," said Dumbledore quietly. "He is very good at using people without them being aware of it. Be very wary."

Alphard gave a roll of his eyes and shook his head, "Lovely. An older version of Riddle. One wasn't enough? Fate is cruel to us, Dumbledore."

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled, "I daresay it is not _that_ horrid." He was rummaging through his desk and found a crimson feather that obviously belonged to Fawkes. "Proof that it is I who gave you authorization." He said it quietly before murmuring, _"Portus."_

The feather glowed a brilliant blue before turning to normal. Dumbledore passed it to Alphard. "Activate it when you are ready."

"Thank you, for the portkey and the potion." Alphard gave the older man a smile. "I'll be fine."

Dumbledore looked dubious but nodded. "Will you be leaving right away?"

"I'll be getting something to eat in Hogsmeade first." The man paused, tilting his head and looking at Dumbledore. "You're still concerned."

"Am I that obvious?" Dumbledore smiled slightly but nodded. "Yes. Grindelwald has… impersonated people in the past. And he would not have to disguise his abilities if he did anything to you. Are you certain you want to do this?"

The office was full of the soft noises of the instruments strewn about before Alphard spoke once more, "Have the return portkey bring me here. You can be sure I'm myself." He handed the feather back to Dumbledore, who murmured the spell once more. Harry knew he was changing the portkey from a one-way trip to a round-trip portkey.

"I'll see you soon." Alphard smiled at the man.

"Indeed," said Dumbledore. "Good luck."

With that, Alphard swept out of the office, Harry with him.


	11. Chapter 11

Lunch was eaten at a vendor in Hogsmeade and all too soon for Harry's taste, they had taken the nausea-inducing portkey.

He swallowed hard staring at the towering jet black fortress. It was as grim and forbidding as Azkaban. Harry followed Alphard, who was immediately stopped by two Regulators.

"The Supreme Mugwump gave me authorization," said the man, holding up the phoenix feather.

The two Regulators hesitated before allowing Alphard in. Harry looked around. The inside was as forbidding and grim as the outside. There were countless empty cells and a lift waiting.

It reminded Harry of the lift at the Market. The man shuddered and he could see Alphard looked apprehensive at the loud rusted noise.

Alphard stopped at the very top. He walked and Harry couldn't control his smile when the man knocked on the door to the cell-like room.

He heard a chuckle from inside.

"Certainly not a Regulator," said a voice. "Enter."

Alphard opened the door and Harry could see the emaciated figure sitting on his small bed, the thin blanket folded neatly under him. The sunken eyes flickered past Alphard, looking directly at Harry.

"Hm. Odd. I thought you would be taller. Master of Death and all of that."

Harry felt himself pale while Alphard turned, a confused look obvious on his face before he turned to look at Grindelwald. He glanced back towards where Grindelwald was looking and Harry, despite knowing this was a memory and the man couldn't see him, moved. He noticed Grindelwald's eyes flickered, following his movements, and it made the Auror take out his wand.

"Oh you know that's useless here," said Grindelwald, his eyes still on Harry.

"... Should I go?" asked Alphard slowly. "Leave you and your… ah… apparitions be?"

Harry wanted to laugh but he couldn't. He knew that Grindelwald was long dead. This was a memory. There was no way the former Dark Lord knew he was even alive, let alone visiting.

And yet…

"No. My… apparition is… _extremely_ interested in this meeting, after all. But you are interesting enough, I suppose."

"... Thank you?" Alphard glanced towards where Harry was standing, where Grindelwald was staring still. "... I think..?" the man shook his head, turning his attention back to Grindelwald.

" _Ah._ The Detcro I've seen in the newspapers." The former Dark Lord looked away from Harry, finally, to stare Alphard up and down, "The Dark One who saves children from the _real_ monsters." He gave a sanctimonious nod of the head.

Alphard said nothing.

"Did you know that children are still lost and trapped?" Grindelwald chuckled, "Oh Detcro. You are just a pebble. A clock in the eleventh hour. You could work to the bone yet you will always be too late to save them."

"... There are others?" Alphard whispered it and Harry felt a sweeping rush of affection for the man. He had come here for assistance with his own issue and had pushed it to the side upon learning children might still be suffering.

Harry wondered if the man had ever had any children of his own.

"Of course there are others. Who would put all of their eggs in one basket?" Grindelwald gave a mild shrug. "If you are hoping for assistance, I cannot help you. They are well shielded. What little I know of them, well… let us just say that the ones who become human house elves are the luckiest."

Disgust and horror were the only words Harry could imagine to describe the horrible look on Alphard's face. He seemed ready to vomit. Harry couldn't blame him. What he had seen of the Market had been bad enough...

"However, I do not think that is why you have come so far to see me. So, Detcro, why do you seek a monster when you are so known for fighting them?" Grindelwald grinned, leaning back against the wall, looking with curiosity at Alphard.

"The ICW has… it has made me a target," explained Alphard, haltingly.

Grindelwald gave a chuckle. "Of _course_ they did. Such a target and yet you were given authorization to visit me. Perhaps we have different definitions of what it means to be an ICW target."

"I went directly to the Supreme Mugwump. He is understanding of the difficulties I am facing in combating the corruption."

Grindelwald raised both eyebrows, "Who is the Supreme Mugwump now?"

"... Albus Dumbledore."

Harry waited for a reaction, but Grindelwald simply nodded, a strange grin crossing his face. "Always did well for himself, Albus. Interesting how for someone who claims to not want power, he accepts it so willingly instead of rejecting it, isn't it?"

Alphard said nothing.

"So you are one of Albus's little favorites." The man gave a soft chuckle, "What a menagerie he collects! First the beast lover with the suitcase… now you, a little magician that plays at being a detective..." The man suddenly turned, looking directly at Harry once more. "And a boy who never _quite_ left that cupboard behind… goodness, how _does_ that man's mind work?"

Harry froze. He knew.

He knew Harry was watching this. How he knew, Harry didn't know. But somehow, Grindelwald was fully aware of his presence, long after both men had died.

Alphard was silent, staring past Grindelwald a moment before looking at the former Dark Lord. "You would have to ask him. Is there anything about the ICW that you can tell me?"

"No." Grindelwald lay back on the small bed. "Your journey was pointless. Enjoy the bit of time you have left, Detcro. Your hour draws near, sooner than you'd like."

Harry frowned. That seemed to be a dismissal.

Alphard hadn't moved.

"This is the part where you leave," said Grindelwald, his voice cutting.

"... The Sesshoseki. What were you planning with it?"

Harry could see the eyebrows lift, the eyes widening. Slowly, Grindelwald sat back up. He was staring at Alphard as if he hadn't just spoken to the man.

"I didn't expect this." He muttered it more in an aside to himself before looking back at Alphard. "You may be more interesting than I thought, Detcro. How do you know of it?"

Alphard stared at the man, his face blank, "I'm sure you can guess."

"It was to be used as a tool," said Grindelwald. "There were many conflicts in the Muggle world. Such an artifact adding to the deaths, well… it would hardly be noticed. I did not have it. A follower of mine did. He always was ambitious. Oh this is delightful."

Harry frowned, not liking the sound of this.

"A follower." Alphard echoed it softly.

"You sound surprised. Certainly the first order of war is to know your enemies. Did you think I wouldn't have them infiltrate other organizations?" Grindelwald began to laugh, "So determined to only catch me that they overlooked all of the others. Goodness, it seems my ways did spread after all."

The former Dark Lord laughed and Harry felt sick. He looked at Alphard instead, who was still looking over Grindelwald's shoulder, the man's gray eyes fixed on something. Harry wondered if he had seen something.

At long last, Grindelwald stopped laughing, speaking, "There is nothing I can do. You have many enemies, Detcro, the old and the new. I…" The man made a strange face, as if he were not used to saying the words. "I... am sorry. My own fate is sealed as well, if that offers any comfort."

"Everyone dies. I'm well aware of that fact."

"But not of how soon it will happen. And it will be sooner than you think. I could give you places and artifacts but it would do nothing." The man indicated himself, "This is the best possible end for those of us the ICW puts in its sights, Detcro. And you did far worse than go to war."

Harry shook his head. Alphard wasn't anything like Grindelwald. How could he say Alphard had done far worse?

"Did I?"

"Yes. You exposed them, little magician." Grindelwald smirked and Harry could see the cruelty in his eyes, on his features. "People will learn from your fall. No one will stand up to them. And it will continue."

The small cell-like room seemed to grow colder.

"And you are fine with this." Alphard said it very softly. "With knowing innocents are suffering-"

"No one is innocent, Detcro." The man's eyes had an almost fanatical light to them. "We scuttle like rats in the gutter, conceal our true natures. Do you think no one else is angry and desperate?" He stared at Alphard challengingly. "Perhaps the ICW has finally seen sense."

Alphard shook his head, "Good day, Mr. Grindelwald." He turned and began to walk off.

"I have not said you can leave, Detcro." Grindelwald's voice was very soft and cold. "You came to me, or did you forget that? Are you so desperate to run to your doom?"

Alphard kept walking.

"Well, I certainly won't weep when those children continue to go missing. No one notices the world in the shadows, the forgotten ones."

Slowly Alphard stopped. Harry could see Grindelwald smirking.

"... You want to have words with him about the cruelty of using children as taunting bait or should I pass along the message?" asked Alphard, and suddenly, Harry could see them. A young man about Teddy Lupin's age and a girl with blond hair who looked somehow quite familiar to Harry, standing there, in front of Alphard.

The young man grinned but there was no humor in it, his eyes fixed on Grindelwald, who was frowning.

"Who's the one seeing apparitions now?" asked the former Dark Lord as wind began to whip around them, screeching. Harry frowned; it seemed… dark, almost, alive and fiercely, bitingly cold.

And Grindelwald froze, straight as a lamppost, staring at Alphard who had turned. The man grinned, a smile as sharp as a sickle.

"Send them away." The old man's voice was harsh. "Do it now. You have no idea what you are going to unleash."

"Now why should I do that, when they're _so_ eager to see you again?" The wind picked up more, the screeching louder. Harry saw the two, obviously spirits, blur slightly, as if they shifting into something else. "Come now, Grindelwald. You have led me on a merry chase and threatened me. And that's fine. But to say no one is innocent, to laugh when those whom are continue to suffer…" Alphard watched as the wind cut into the former Dark Lord, who stared at Alphard challengingly.

"If I die here, you-"

"You will die here." Alphard said, cutting the other man off. "Be it today or years from now. What does it matter to me?" With that, he turned and Harry saw the wind cut more into Grindelwald, the screeching so loud it was a howl.

"Send them away!" Grindelwald shouted it and Harry could see his hands moving. The man was obviously skilled in wandless magic if he was even attempting it, but nothing happened. If anything, it made the spirits angrier, because the former Dark Lord crashed against the wall of the small, cell-like room. Blood began to seep from his throat, his arms.

Harry stared in shock. Alphard really was willing to let Grindelwald die. He had not expected such ruthlessness.

"The one I entrusted with the Sesshoseki was accepted into the Regulator program." Grindelwald's voice was surprisingly calm but Harry could hear the undercurrent of nervousness in it.

"Thank you," said Alphard softly, the wind dying instantly. The Detcro was looking at the two spirits, who both nodded and were gone.

Even young people could be formidable. Harry only wished the two had lived to be older.

"What else?" asked Alphard softly, looking at Grindelwald.

The former Dark Lord smiled, Harry surprised at how quickly the wounds on him healed. "I think I see why Albus likes you so much. You are very practical." The man gave a sigh, "I had followers everywhere, Detcro. Some may have quit when I fell. Others may have renounced the past. And others may still be rising in the ranks, determined to fulfill the vision I had of a world we no longer hid in."

"The Regulator. Can you give a name?"

Grindelwald shook his head, "Not with the protection on the information. As for the ICW…" the man indicated himself. "What I told you earlier was the truth. Perhaps you can find another way. You are quite full of surprises."

Alphard nodded, looking grim. Harry could relate. At least one of Grindelwald's followers was a Regulator in the ICW. "Thank you."

"There is something more, though it is unrelated to your request. A few somethings. Tell the Supreme Mugwump to wear something more official if he expects to be taken seriously. Lime green with purple dancing creatures, honestly…"

"Of course." Harry had no idea how Alphard was keeping a straight face. Only Dumbledore… "What else?"

"You know better than anyone about the fears of those like you." Grindelwald was staring at him. "Though you are nearing your time, I assure you, it will not be in vain. It will take longer than you will like, but…" the man's eyes flickered to Harry and back to Alphard, "but it will be worth it. You will be a legend to the children lost in the dark."

"Well, I've heard that to die will be quite the adventure. I suppose I'll see for myself soon enough."

Grindelwald looked at him, as if memorizing the man's features. "Good day, Detcro Black. And tell the Regulators to spare a dash of salt in the gruel for once, it won't kill the budget to use seasoning, honestly…"

Alphard shook his head and left the former Dark Lord. Harry, shaken, left the memory. He had planned to pull an all nighter but having just been stared at by a Dark Lord and acknowledged in a memory was a bit much.

He crawled next to Ginny, who blinked, looking at him with bleary eyes. His wife smiled, pressing a kiss to the side of his lips and curling up next to him.

Harry shut his eyes, holding her close. Sometimes, silence was louder than any words could be. He was tired and concerned and Ginny knew it. He knew she knew and wasn't going to press him, because she knew he'd tell her when he was ready.

The next morning, he told her about what had happened in the memories he had viewed as he made them both scrambled eggs with cheese over toast.

Ginny held her steaming mug of tea, looking at him. "Grindelwald was always said to be on par with Dumbledore," she said quietly. "And Dumbledore always seemed to know everything."

Harry chortled, "You've got that right. He was really perceptive. But that wouldn't explain Grindelwald. Alphard had no idea what he was talking about. And I… did. I _knew_ he meant me."

"It does seem strange," said Ginny, frowning. "But this makes no sense, Harry. If the ICW wants this artifact, why would they care if you don't give them the notes?"

"Honestly?" Harry drummed his fingers on the table, thinking. "All I can imagine is there's something big. Bigger than even the scandal Alphard found. Something Gagnon _needs_ to have."

"But what?" muttered Ginny, frowning. "Harry, the ICW's a lot bigger than the Ministry. What on earth could we possibly have here that the ICW can't get, with all its resources?"

"Whatever it is… I think it's in here," said Harry quietly, tapping the casebook.

His wife sighed, shaking her head, "Just be careful. If they think you're an enemy… from what you're telling me, it doesn't end well for people. And even people that weren't part of it. Poor Charlus…"

Harry pressed his lips to the back of Ginny's hand. "They won't hurt you, dear. You or the kids or anyone in our family. That won't happen."

"I know," said Ginny, sighing. "Gagnon isn't that Miller. He sent assistance when cleaning up the Dementors and everything… there's got to be a reason…"

"We'll figure it out. Might take a while, but we will."

The couple shared a brief kiss before setting off to their respective jobs. Harry was walking to the lifts in the Atrium when a hand grabbed him by the arm.

He turned to see Dennis Creevey standing there. The younger man had declined the offer to work as an Auror, instead choosing the Department of Mysteries and working as an Unspeakable. "Hey Dennis."

"Hey," said Dennis, not grinning at all, which was highly unusual for him. "I'm really sorry to bother you Harry, but I'm concerned and I thought it'd be a good idea to run this by you since you do a lot of field work and might see something."

"You never bother me," said Harry, and this was the truth. The Creevey brothers had believed him when no one had and had fought despite being nothing but children. Colin had died for that belief and Harry did not ever want Dennis to think he had forgotten the depths of their loyalty to him. "What is it?"

"Mostly rumor mill things, but… concerning ones." Dennis lowered his voice even more, so much so that Harry could scarcely hear him. "Harry, some of our old layout plans for time turners, they're gone. I was going through storage and paperwork, catching up, cleaning it, inventory… you know… boring stuff nobody wants to do."

"Got that right," agreed Harry, thinking of the mountain of paperwork on his desk and trying not to shudder.

Dennis grinned slightly but nodded, "It's not just those, but… well, you know the rumors. There's other stuff too. Potions, experiments… but…"

"Yeah." Harry nodded, not liking this news one bit. "I'll keep an eye out. Do we have any idea who could have done it?"

"Honestly, nobody's done this organizing in decades," admitted Dennis, looking slightly ashamed. "So… not really. It could've been years."

Harry couldn't blame the Unspeakables. His department _still_ had loads of paperwork. He didn't want to imagine how long it'd take to sort. "Thanks Dennis."

"Don't mention it."

"You know I won't," assured Harry.

With a quick nod, the Unspeakable walked off. Harry was pretty sure if his director found out that Dennis had told Harry even that much, he would be in serious trouble. Not discussing their department was in their name, after all.

Harry had just reached his office and had reached for the evil stack of paperwork on his desk when there was a knock on the door. Glad for the distraction, he quickly spoke, "Come in."

Immediately, he wished he hadn't. Gagnon was standing at the doorway.

"Commander," said Harry, nodding at him. "What brings you here?"

"Concerns that you are not taking this request as seriously as it really should be," said the man. "If you need assistance with your duties, I would be pleased to have a few Regulators assist you."

"You've stated you don't know what you're looking for," said Harry. "And I don't know if you've ever sorted through people's things, but it takes a while. Do you know anyone, _anyone_ else, that might have it?"

The Commander of the Regulators gave Harry a look filled with exasperation, "Perhaps his family or his old friends, if not you. The odds of this are minuscule, however, Auror Potter, and I strongly recommend you look through your own belongings thoroughly."

With that, the man left Harry's office. The Head Auror gave a tired sigh and rubbed his temples tiredly. Paying Andromeda a visit certainly seemed a decent idea right now. At the very least, it would look as if he were checking into the request of the ICW.

He stared at the scattered parchment and notebooks in his office and flicked his wand. It was still quite a lot of paperwork, this was true, but at least it was organized. With that, Harry Potter quickly looked around the office. He didn't see Hermione. Hurriedly, feeling very much like he was much younger, Harry left the Ministry.

His best friend meant well, but Harry couldn't understand how she could stand being inside a stuffy office doing paperwork all day. She nagged at him constantly about keeping up with his paperwork but Harry saw no point in it. What was the point in reviewing the paperwork when he was the one actively pursuing the cases and people of interest?

Shaking his head, quite relieved, Harry went to pay Andromeda Tonks a visit.


	12. Chapter 12

Walking to the woman's house, Harry paused, seeing her outside. Andromeda had her hair pulled upwards, away from her face, and she was working in the garden. The scent of herbs and flowers tickled Harry's nose and he wondered what spells Andromeda used to make the plants bloom despite the weather getting colder.

"Oh hello Harry," she said, giving him an affectionate smile. "If you're looking for Teddy, he's at work. Then he mentioned going out with Tori to dinner and a play."

Harry smiled, thinking of his godson and niece. "To be young again."

"As if you're so old." The woman shook her head, "You're still young yourself."

"Well, thank you for that," said Harry, smiling slightly. "It was actually you I came to see. I wanted to ask you some questions about your uncle."

Andromeda slowly placed the watering can she was holding down. "What uncle?" she looked curious, obviously thinking.

"Alphard."

Instantly, an affectionate, warm look was on her face and she sighed. "Uncle Alphard. Now that's a name I haven't heard in a long time." She gave a smile tinged with sadness, "Let's go inside." She led the way, pausing at the threshold. "It was Uncle that put the down payment on this house for us, as a wedding present. He paid for our wedding too, saying the wife's family should do their part."

Harry looked at the cozy cottage and the land around it before entering the house as well. "Was he married?"

"Married to his work," said Andromeda with a chuckle. "Uncle worked as a detective necromancer but he had other investments as well. Those troupes that have dancing skeletons, he started the trend… and he dealt a bit in real estate, buying properties abandoned in the Muggle world and converting them for wizarding kind to live."

"Sounds like you were fond of him."

"I was." She looked closely at Harry as they both sat. "But he died before you were born. Has something happened?"

"The ICW wants records and the like of him. I've… discovered some things about the organization that… makes me wary about doing that. I know Alphard was investigating them."

Andromeda looked apologetic, "I never really focused on Uncle's work. I know he started to exposed a huge scandal but I don't know the details."

"Would he have left any of his things…" Harry trailed off, unsure of how to phrase it without sounding rude.

The woman smiled at him. "Don't worry. Uncle left most of his things to Sirius. He worried about Sirius, running off without even a roof over his head…"

"Sirius was pretty impulsive," said Harry, smiling with a pang of pain at the thought. His godfather had always been rash.

Andromeda nodded, "Uncle took care of all of us. Even in his will, all of us nieces and nephews got something."

Harry raised both eyebrows, "Really?".

"Yes. I can remember that Bellatrix had a very ornate wand-holster, Narcissa a hair clip that was goblin made. He left me some of his books that I always enjoyed, and some art." The woman indicated it on the walls and Harry realized that he recognized it from Alphard's flat in the memories. How hadn't he realized Andromeda had the same pieces? "Regulus had gotten some books and a set of robes that his parents had always refused to buy him and Sirius got enough gold to survive on his own and other things."

"Bellatrix and Narcissa spoke to him?" Harry frowned, thinking over this.

"Oh yes. Uncle was… well, like I said, he was married to his work. It's a bit hard to know if someone cares about bloodlines or anything when they're busy lecturing you for interrupting research into human anatomy and asking if it'd be feasible for a skeleton to clap without an epidermis or if it'd sound like a clop."

Harry chuckled, imagining that. He hadn't seen that aspect in the memories yet. Perhaps they were in other days… "Do… do you know how he died? I've gotten conflicting information and no one seems sure."

The house was silent before Andromeda murmured, "It was something with his heart. A weak heart. I suppose all those years of the Dark Arts had a price after all…"

Harry frowned, "Where was he when he died? Who found him?"

"He was in his flat," said Andromeda. "And it was one of his old friends from Hogwarts. Mr. Dolohov." The woman shook her head, "I can't believe he was a Death Eater, sometimes. Him and Mr. Rookwood were… they were very surprising." The woman dabbed at her eyes, "Rookwood killed my great-uncle for his job. Uncle Alphard said someone had killed him, but he didn't know who or why. He couldn't look into it and the Ministry refused."

"How do you know it was Rookwood then?"

"Because it was looked into… after everything, after… Halloween." Andromeda gave Harry a pointed look.

He understood immediately; until the day his mother's spell had stopped Voldemort. _That_ Halloween.

"Why so long?" asked Harry, frowning. "He was the Director of the Department of Mysteries."

"You really do your research, don't you?" Andromeda looked impressed. "Dumbledore brought it up, in Rookwood's trial. No one imagined he could be one. He just… Rookwood, Dark? If you had said it, everyone would have thought you had too much mead… he was always friendly to everyone, even said how he supported peaceful resolutions and coexistence… if Uncle had been around, well…"

She sighed, shaking her head, while Harry mulled over this. He had seen the arguments between Dolohov and Alphard. And he had fought Dolohov himself; the Dark Arts made people do sick things…

"Thank you," said Harry, standing up. Loathe as he was to admit it, it seemed a visit to Azkaban would be in order.

He left the house and debated, checking the time. Part of him wanted to go talk to Ron about everything but Ron would tell his wife… who would lecture Harry about his paperwork again. Harry loved Hermione like a sister but he simply had too much going on to deal with her nagging.

Truth be told, Harry wanted to see his wife, but he knew that showing up at her job would cause annoying articles written by Rita Skeeter to appear. The woman tried to make him seem like an overbearing husband or negligent father, and those were the _nice_ articles.

Harry sighed and decided to go to Azkaban. He hated the isle even now, despite the fact that no Dementors were on the premise. The gusts of air and sea water made Harry shiver slightly as he entered the prison, the Aurors at the door both nodding in greeting to him.

"Auror Potter," said a voice as Harry entered the lobby of the prison. "This is unexpected."

Harry turned to see the Warden, Brangian Ekrizdisson standing there. The descendents of the wizard Ezkrizdis had been the Wardens of Azkaban for as long as records went back on the prison. It was their penance for their ancestor's actions and though the Dementors no longer guarded the prison, the Ministry had allowed the family to remain as the Wardens. Harry was sure that it would be difficult to find someone who would be willing to stay on Azkaban so long, even without the Dementors present.

"Sorry," said Harry. "I wanted to speak to one of the prisoners."

"Certainly." She moved her long, thick dark hair behind her ear and a book appeared in her hand. It looked very much like a ledger. "The name of the inmate?"

"Antonin Dolohov."

The woman wrote it and the book vanished. "Auror Proudfoot will be bringing the prison to the interrogation chamber for your use, Auror Potter. This way."

They walked through the grim gray halls, Harry looking at the dreariness and bleakness. Who would risk subjecting themselves to this?

The interrogation chamber was a small, dark room, it by flaming torches with a chair that had golden chains attached to it in the middle. As Harry entered, he saw the chains wrapping themselves around Dolohov. He was far older, which wasn't surprising, his dark hair now gray, his skin still pale and his face seemed as if it hadn't been shaved in a few days.

"Well if this isn't a fun social call," said Dolohov, his dark eyes fixed on Harry, his lips curling into a thin, mocking smile. "Potter, the Brat-Who-Lived."

"Dolohov." Harry refused to show any emotion. The man in front of him was a murderer, cruel and sadistic. "I have a few questions about a crime you are believed to have committed."

The older man gave a soft chuckle, looking sickeningly amused and proud. "You're going to have to be more specific than that, boy."

"I am speaking about the murder of Detcro Alphard Black."

Immediately, at the mention of the name, it was as if Harry was looking at a different man. The mocking smile had dropped to a look of astonishment mingled with horror. "What did you just say?" Dolohov's voice had cracked in the middle of the question and he attempted to stand, the chains jangling and forcing him back. His thin face was twisted with fury. _"WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY?!"_

Harry certainly had not expected this sort of reaction. "I am here to ask you some questions about your hand in the murder of-"

"Alphard wasn't murdered!" The man howled it, narrowing his eyes at Harry. "It was his heart. His heart stopped, there wasn't a spell!"

"Some do not believe his death was of natural causes. You two had numerous arguments. You were on the scene when his body was discovered." Harry stared at the older man, who was looking more and more furious with every word Harry spoke. "You seemed eager to brag about your crimes a minute ago. What's the problem now?"

"He wasn't murdered!" The man said it almost desperately, his dark eyes wide as he shook his head in fierce denial. "Not Alphard. He was too intelligent, too clever, too-"

"The Detcro had a high number of enemies, Dolohov."

Now the man's anger was directed at Harry once more, "And you think I'm one? Never. Not him. _Never_ him."

Harry stared at the prisoner for a moment.

"Why were you at his flat? He made it obvious he didn't want you around."

"Yes, he said that and then didn't change his locks while I still have the keys," said Dolohov, rolling his eyes. Harry frowned. "Of course we argued, Potter, but I would have turned my wand on myself before turning it on him."

"That's quite a claim from a man who was fine killing kids and innocent people," said Harry coolly. "Wow. Doesn't that sound like his case? Dealing with people willing to be sick towards children and-"

"That was Law Enforcement," spat Dolohov. "People like you, not people like me. I went to his flat to see him. And he was… laying on the sofa, one of his casebooks next to him… Lazy as always, would sleep all day if a case or family function wasn't there to wake him… sleeping as if I wouldn't wake him up… as if I wouldn't…" the man's voice trailed off and his head bowed. All Harry could see was the top of his head, gray hair illuminated in the flaming torch light.

The silence stretched a moment before Harry spoke, "His will. Was anything left to you?"

"A clock," said Dolohov, his voice strangely listless. "A cuckoo clock, to remind me what he thought of..." the man trailed off, still not looking up. The chains rattled over his lap and Harry frowned. The man's lap was… wet with a few drops. But there was no leak in the room.

Tears?

That was impossible. Dolohov was someone proud of his crimes, proud of the pain he caused, glorifying in it. He was more of a monster than any creature Harry had faced… and monsters did not cry.

"Nothing more?"

"No."

"You insist it was not murder. Did Alphard have health issues before, then?"

Dolohov shook his head once more. "No."

Harry gave a tired sigh. He had hoped to learn more but it seemed that his only option was the casebook…

"Why after all of this time, Potter?" Dolohov stared at Harry, who forced himself to not look at the tear-stained face. "What has happened? Why are you asking questions about him?"

"The ICW-"

Harry didn't even get the opportunity to finish.

"Even now they chase him?!" Dolohov shook, the chains jangling dangerously.

"Yes," said Harry quietly. "Even now."

Dolohov was frowning, looking at Harry intently. "I cherished him, Potter. More than you will ever know. If he was murdered as you claim, then it was the ICW. No one else would dare."

Perhaps it was foolish, but Harry believed him. "Very well. Thank you." He left, Proudfoot entering the room. Harry followed Brangian out of the prison and was relieved to Apparate off when he was out of the range of the wards.

Tired, all Harry wanted to do was go home and pretend things were normal. It was hard to imagine that only a few days ago, he hadn't been involved in a decades old case that seemed to have never been solved. He never knew about his great-uncle or even that necromancers could be detectives…

Instead, he went to Grimmauld Place. He would finish the memory from earlier and then… a thought occurred to him. Perhaps he should see the last date documented in the casebook…

First he would see the rest of the memory. He was curious what Dumbledore could have possibly said after Alphard had told him of the meeting with the former Dark Lord. And then…

Then Harry would see what the last memory held. Perhaps it was just another case but it had one of the asterisks Sirius had made as well. Harry suspected he should have done it sooner but he also suspected he would not have known nearly as much if he had done that. He knew his knowledge was still lacking but he couldn't afford to go through every single case that was documented.

Resting on the comfortable armchair, Harry went to where he had left off, groaning as the portkey from Nurmengard hurled him back to the Hogwarts Headmaster's office. Not a pleasant way to start anything…

The first thing that Harry noticed was Fawkes standing on the desk. Dumbledore was sitting at the desk, various paperwork in front of him. Candlelight filled the office and Harry could see it had long turned into night in the memory, by looking out the windows and at Dumbledore's magnificently embroidered purple and gold dressing gown over a snowy white nightshirt.

Though it was night, Dumbledore seemed wide awake and so did Fawkes, who had immediately moved his beak to touch Alphard's nose.

"... Well, this is new," murmured the Detcro, raising both eyebrows. "Hi there."

Fawkes happily trilled at him before flying back to his perch.

"Do I want to know?" asked Alphard, glancing at the phoenix before looking back at Dumbledore.

The man gave a slight smile, "He knew I was concerned that you might not be yourself. He decided to investigate."

Alphard just shook his head, settling into the seat across from Dumbledore.

"Are you well?" asked Dumbledore, looking over the other man with concern. "Would you like something to eat or drink?"

"I'm okay," said Alphard, even as his stomach gave a light rumble. Harry chortled while Dumbledore gave Alphard a very dubious look, his light blue eyes twinkling. Alphard gave a groan, "Merlin, this is just like when I was a student. I really am okay, I ate before I left. Just must have used more energy than I thought. Blasted portkey…"

Dumbledore softly chuckled, looking quite amused. "I admit, I did not have to chase other students out of the library to remind them to eat."

"People swore you were my Head of House," said Alphard, shaking his head with amusement. "I suppose I should eat something, if only to make sure you don't turn into a mother hen."

"Perish the thought," said Dumbledore, flicking his wand. A tray appeared and Harry raised both eyebrows, looking curious when Dumbledore frowned. He didn't see why; the steak and potatoes looked delicious. "My apologies. I don't believe the house elves realized this meal had to be a bit different than what was served for dinner."

"I can move the steak," said Alphard quietly. "It's not a problem."

Harry slowly looked at the Detcro. He thought over the different memories and realized that he had never seen the man eating meat.

"Don't be ridiculous, we had pasta as well," said Dumbledore, the tray vanishing and another one appearing. This seemed more to the man's liking, pasta mixed with vegetables in a simple tomato sauce.

"Thank you." Alphard began to eat, glancing at the headmaster. "He gave one useful bit of knowledge but it's not pleasant."

"Nothing Grindelwald says tends to be," said Dumbledore with a soft sigh.

Giving a chuckle, Alphard murmured, "Well, he did give advice regarding your wardrobe. Stated that your lime green robes with dancing creatures won't let people take you seriously."

Dumbledore immediately looked outraged, "I _like_ the robes with the platypuses. They're adorable and purple."

Harry couldn't control his laughter at the thought of Dumbledore in such robes. He saw Alphard just stare at the older man before returning his attention to the pasta, obviously thinking better of whatever he had been tempted to say. Instead he murmured, "He also tried to plant doubts regarding your ambitions."

The office was silent save for the soft ticking of the instruments within.

"And what do you think?" asked Dumbledore quietly, looking at him.

Alphard looked back at the older man, "Your ambition and current rank as Supreme Mugwump certainly made uncovering the horrors under Knockturn Alley far easier, and it was difficult even with that. Ambition is not a crime, but I think it should always be tempered with sense and compassion."

A slightly embarrassed look passed Dumbledore's face but he nodded, "That is a wise sentiment. What is it that he shared that you feel is useful?"

"Albus…" Alphard looked very tired and he stared across the desk at the startled looking Dumbledore. "... Albus, there's a… one of…" the Detcro closed his eyes before continuing softly, "One of Grindelwald's followers was a Regulator. And wasn't exposed."

Slowly the older man paled, the concern on his face obvious. "And we aren't authorized to have the identities of Regulators. It can be anyone."

"You see the problem."

Dumbledore closed his eyes tiredly. "Your source that assisted with identities in the case from Knockturn Alley. Do you think they can lend assistance once more?"

"I can't imagine how," admitted Alphard, sighing. "They'll be keeping a closer eye, for one. And for another, how would any relationship with Grindelwald be revealed? It's not exactly something that'd be documented…" The man rubbed at his eyes, "He mentioned there were other places like the Market. It wasn't the only one."

"The devil always lies," said Dumbledore darkly, his eyes flashing.

Alphard looked at him grimly, "Except when the truth hurts more."

"... You believe him, then. That there are other dens of indescribable horrors, that one of his insane followers infiltrated the Law Enforcement of the ICW?"

"Yes. Yes I do."

Dumbledore seemed to age years in that moment, but Alphard seemed the same way. "We have our work cut out for us then. You have traveled a lot and must be tired. I insist you stay in a guest room. In the morning, I will see what paperwork I can do to assist you the best I can."

"Thank you." Alphard stood up, as did Dumbledore. The headmaster led the way to a small hallway that Harry knew no classrooms or offices were in. This must be where guests to the school stayed. The room Alphard entered was resplendent, the massive bed looking comfortable and the bathroom making Harry wonder if Hogwarts had had a diving team at one point.

The two men bid each other goodnight and Alphard sat on the bed, looking tired. He had taken off his coat and hat and Harry chuckled at seeing them hover in midair. The man groaned softly as he took off his shoes, laying the smoked spectacles on the bedtable and stretching.

It was after he had undone his dress shirt that he paused, frowning. Harry knew why; there had been a soft knock at the door. Had Dumbledore forgotten to ask something? A look of concern on his face, Alphard walked to the door and opened it. Harry began to grin, unable to control himself.

"Oh Merlin," groaned Alphard as Sirius grinned widely at him. But Sirius wasn't alone. Harry's heart raced at seeing the head hovering in midair next to him, a teen boy with hazel eyes and untidy black hair that stuck up. "How did you even… I don't want to know. I don't want to know at all. Get in here. Is it just you two?"

"Yeah. Peter's sleeping and Remus refused to come out, he wanted to finish that essay. We've got three days before it's due but nooooo." James shook his head.

"What are you doing here, Uncle?" asked Sirius, hugging the man immediately.

The man sat down on the bed as the two boys sat, looking eager. "Just was looking into another issue. Dumbledore was kind enough to let me use the guest room. He must have noticed I was tired."

"You work too hard," said Sirius.

James tilted his head, looking at Alphard. "Father says you were there when Uncle Charlus…" When Alphard nodded, Harry could see the pain on his father's face. "Why? Why would anyone kill Uncle Charlus?"

"I…" Alphard was silent a moment. "You are both young, but these are dangerous times. It is my fear… which I believe confirmed by the death, but… I believe the Ministry of Magic has been infiltrated by Death Eaters."

Both boys shared grim looks before turning back to Alphard. "So we shouldn't look into a career in the Ministry then?" asked Sirius.

"Depends on the risks you want to take," said Alphard quietly. "But… given the current atmosphere, with how Crouch reacted when I told him about Uncle's murder… I personally believe it would be safer if you did not seek to be employed by them."

From the serious nods, Harry wondered if this was why his father and Sirius had opted to work directly for the Order instead of the Ministry. They had been full-time Order operatives. Even his mother had been; Harry had access to the vault now and yes, he and Ginny didn't _have_ to work. But Harry enjoyed his job; he helped people and stopped Dark witches and wizards, he kept people safe. Ginny worked sharing her love of sports in the newspaper.

But if the Ministry hadn't changed, if it had been like it was under Fudge, Harry knew he never would have taken a job as an Auror. The Daily Prophet was still full of Rita Skeeter's articles due to how well they sold…

He felt himself being shaken frantically.

"Huh?" Harry looked around the room, confused until he saw Hermione's concerned face. "Hermione, what's wrong?"

"Robards and Shack are looking for you," she said, looking as if she were trying her best to keep calm. Another person wouldn't have known something was terribly wrong unless they knew her well. Hermione was his sister. Harry knew her well.

"Why? What's happened?" He stood up, tucking the casebook away.

Hermione took a deep breath, "There's been a breakout from Azkaban."


	13. Chapter 13

Harry could not have possibly heard correctly.

"What did you just say?" he asked, hoping despite himself that perhaps this time, he had heard wrong.

Hermione gave him a sympathetic look, "There's been a breakout, Harry. A few former Death Eaters. Robards wants us on the scene as soon as possible."

"I just visited the prison earlier," said Harry, frowning. "Everything was fine, was secure…"

"You went to Azkaban?" Hermione looked surprised. "Why…? Oh." She nodded, obviously deducing what it was. "Did you learn anything?"

"Just that even Death Eaters seemed to have some respect for him," said Harry with a sigh. "I guess it's not really too surprising, thinking about it. Alphard wasn't in the Order because he was too busy with international issues. And since he was related to Death Eaters…"

"I'm sure if it had come down to it, he'd have been considered an enemy," said Hermione wisely. "Look at how they treated Sirius."

"Yeah…" Harry nodded and the two Apparated. Harry was soon back on the isle, which was much creepier in the dark. He walked immediately into the lobby where Brangian was dealing with a very upset Gawain Robards, the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement.

Harry strode in, Hermione right behind him. Robards looked up, his white hair gleaming in the flaming torch light. "Potter, Warden Ekrizdisson has said you were here earlier."

"I was," said Harry. "The wards and everything were fine." He looked at Brangian, who was giving Robards a look that practically screamed _'told you so!'_ "Do you have any idea how this could have happened, Warden?"

"We had to bring Auror Proudfoot to St. Mungo's," said the woman quietly. "His wand was missing and a fork had been…" she indicated her jugular and the others in the room winced sympathetically. "The alarm was raised when they broke the wards to leave but… we were not fast enough."

Harry nodded, "Pointing fingers isn't going to solve the problem. All that matters is finding them and doing it quickly. Who escaped?"

Once more the woman consulted her ledger, looking with concern at Harry. "Rodolphus Lestrange, Rabastan Lestrange, Thorfinn Rowle and…" Brangian looked at Harry apologetically, "... and Antonin Dolohov."

Just his luck. Harry sighed, thinking frantically where they could have gone. "Where was Proudfoot found?"

"Outside of Rodolphus Lestrange's cell," said Brangian.

"Right, well, first thing they're going to do is try to find spare wands," said Harry, thinking of when he had been on the run. "They don't have theirs on them. I want every wand dealer aware of the situation and I want Hit Wizards stationed outside of their shops if possible. Someone should tell the newspapers and the Wireless, make people aware of the situation."

Hermione began to write this down while Robards nodded, "That should be possible. Granger, you notify the press, I'll inform the Minister. You just focus on tracking down those Death Eaters."

Harry nodded and left, wishing more than ever that Ron and Neville were still Aurors. They were people he could rely on in an emergency and he wouldn't have had to give them much instruction. Though his Aurors were talented, they were still very much in awe of him and many would not think to question him or ask him for clarification… or they thought he was too young and often would stubbornly do things their way.

Before he did anything else, his first thought was to go to Hogwarts. He knew better than anyone how the school tended to be a target and the least that could be done was to have them increase security.

"To what do I owe this late visit, Harry?" asked Minerva McGonagall, yawning but still coherent and alert.

Wasting no time, Harry informed her of what had happened at Azkaban. The woman frowned, looking concerned before she nodded. "I will gather the staff and we will increase the security measures. Thank you."

Harry had left the office just as she had used the fireplace. He could hear Filius Flitwick's voice as he stepped onto the moving spiral staircase.

With that completed, Harry went to Hogsmeade, seeking out a certain curmudgeon that had helped him greatly before. The sign of the Hog's Head creaked eerily in the night and Harry paused. He knew the reputation of the inn, and it was one that had cost him before. He had learned.

He conjured a hooded cloak, slipping it over his head. Though it was tempting to cover his scar and the like, Harry wanted to speak to Aberforth Dumbledore, not have the man think he was a normal patron. The next thing the Auror did was use a balm to cover the scar on his hand, shining thinly at him in the light of the moon: _I must not tell lies._

At least that was one prisoner who hadn't escaped Azkaban. Grinning slightly at that thought, Harry entered the Hog's Head.

As usual, it was filthy, with only the lit stubs of candles giving light. The few patrons within were sipping at their various drinks, their heads covered with hoods, scarves or veils. Harry approached the counter and lifted his head to look Aberforth in the eye.

To say the old man was surprised was amusing to say the least. He wiped his glasses on a very dirty cloth and squinted behind them at Harry. "... What will you have?" muttered the man.

"Some mead and privacy," said Harry in a voice just as low.

"Go on upstairs, I'll bring your order," said Aberforth, turning to the dusty bottles behind him. Harry walked up the rickety staircase, looking around the small sitting room.

It was the same as he remembered; he smiled back at the portrait of Ariana and settled into a chair after lighting the fireplace with a flick of his wand.

Soon, Aberforth had returned. "What brings you here?" he asked, placing the mead and a small charcuterie tray on a small table near Harry.

"There's been a breakout from Azkaban," said Harry.

Aberforth rolled his light blue eyes, spectacles reflecting the light as he grumbled, "Why do people still call it that when it's not even on the same island anymore?"

"We never changed the name," said Harry, giving a light shrug. "Everyone was used to the prison being Azkaban, so… it kept the name. But… given your resources, what you see…"

Privately, Harry suspected if Aberforth rolled his eyes any more, they would fall out of his head. "Yeah yeah. Who got out?"

A bit amused at the man's succinctness despite the dire situation, Harry answered, "The Lestranges, Rowle and Dolohov."

"I'll keep an eye out," said Aberforth with a nod. "Take care of yourself."

"I'll try. You do the same." Harry made short work of the food and mead given to him as Aberforth returned downstairs. He was glad for the quick meal and he nodded to the older man as he left the inn. Now that Hogwarts was aware of the situation and someone in Hogsmeade was, Harry Apparated to the Ministry, calling an emergency meeting of every active Auror that was available.

Those that were on active guard duty, he kept there. Others he sent to Hogwarts and Hogsmeade to assist there, as well as to St. Mungo's. Next, he sent a team to Diagon Alley while he himself, with Auror Andrew Kirke and Lisa Turpin, made their way to the house where the Rowle family lived.

A green light flashed and the three Aurors scattered immediately. In the light, Harry could see that it was Rabastan Lestrange. Thin enough that he resembled a skeleton, the Dark wizard reminded Harry of a rabid dog with his howls of laughter and his demented grin.

While Harry assessed the situation, another spell flew from a window. He had just found Thorfinn Rowle. Harry shouted a warning to the other two Aurors, Lisa immediately moving her attention to the larger man while Harry scanned the area once more, trusting that his two compatriots could hold off the two Death Eaters while he thought quickly about what to do next.

Casting a barrier so that the two Death Eaters couldn't escape, Harry stopped; something was actively trying to shatter his spell. He whirled around, looking for the culprit and dodged a spell that flew at his face. The heat from the streak of white light made Harry relieved and he saw that it was Rodolphus Lestrange. The man hurled another spell that was not pleasant at Harry, who heard the barrier shattering.

He looked up to see a figure, a young woman, running. Harry cast the barrier again, reflecting Rodolphus Lestrange's spells back at him. The older man's face was twisted with a strange, savage hate mingled with what Harry suspected was satisfaction.

"You don't have a chance," spat Rodolphus. Harry ignored this, transfiguring the ground under the man into quicksand and disarming him before using a Stunning spell. Azkaban and age had obviously not done the former Death Eater any favors in his ability to duel.

Harry turned his attention to the other duels and nearly laughed as Lisa elbowed Rabastan Lestrange in the face as Andrew, his face bleeding, used a Stunning spell on Rowle. It had been smart of the two to join forces, Harry had to admit, and Rabastan Lestrange had most definitely not expected a physical attack. He fell backwards as Lisa used a Stunning spell before both of the other Aurors bound them.

"You okay, Harry?" called the other man.

"Yeah," said Harry. "Either of you got something to make a portkey?"

The two rummaged through their robe pockets, Harry doing the same, and soon Lisa offered up a small lip balm container.

"Thanks," said Harry to her, moving the three Death Eaters in a small triangle and adjusting their arms so each had a finger on the container. He tapped the container with his wand and it glowed with a bright blue light. Taking a few steps back, Harry watched as the three vanished, sent back to Azkaban.

"Inside then?" said Andrew, wiping at the new cut on his face with the back of his hand. "I definitely want to ask Mrs. Rowle a few things."

Harry nodded in agreement, rummaging in his own pocket for his ever trusty small bottle of Essence of Dittany. "Here. Use this on your cheek, it'll help."

"Thanks." The other Auror placed a few tiny drops quickly and grinned as a small puff of green smoke appeared and the wound was instantly sealed. He handed the bottle back to Harry and the three entered the Rowle house.

"You can't just walk in here-!"

"Mrs. Rowle, I strongly suggest you answer any questions we have for you or you'll be joining your husband in Azkaban," said Harry loudly.

The woman glowered furiously at him, her hands on her hips. Harry stared right back at her and she scowled before huffing and looking away. "What do you want to know?"

"Who else is here?"

"No one," snapped the woman.

Andrew shared a dubious look with Harry, "We'll be taking a look around then."

"Look all you want," snapped Mrs. Rowle.

"Oh we will," assured Lisa, walking with Andrew.

Harry looked at the woman, "Why did they come here?"

"My husband wanted to see me," snapped the woman. "You're married, aren't you?"

"The Lestranges were with him. Where is Dolohov?"

"I don't know. I was busy reuniting with my husband. You don't have any right starting problems here, he didn't do anything."

The woman's attitude was rubbing Harry the wrong way immediately. He loathed dealing with people like her, people who clung to Voldemort's attitude of intolerance and disdain for anyone different than themselves. "He ruined countless lives. In your silence and approval, you did the same. Being an accomplice also is a crime."

With a look of the utmost distaste, the woman looked away from Harry.

After roughly an hour, the other two returned, holding some books and potions that were highly illegal.

"You can't just take artifacts!" protested Mrs. Rowle furiously. "Those were-you can't just-"

"Possession of these is a fee of seventy Galleons or a month in Azkaban," said Harry. "Anything else?"

Both Lisa and Andrew shook their heads. "No one else here."

Harry nodded and looked back at Mrs. Rowle, "We'll be following up with you."

With that, the three left, Harry returning to the Ministry. All too soon, he was in his office with Minister Kingsley Shacklebolt and the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Gawain Robards.

"So we found three out of the four," said Shacklebolt, giving a sigh of relief.

"Still missing one," said Robards grimly. "It would've been too lucky for them to have been all together…"

Shack nodded, "Of course. But this is a better situation now than it was a few hours ago." The former Member of the Order of the Phoenix looked at Harry sternly, "Harry, go rest."

"I'm fine," said Harry.

"You're always fine," retorted Shack. "I've heard about the ICW needing your aid in something, this on top of it… you need rest. I don't want to see you here tomorrow."

"There's an escaped convict!"

Robards looked at Harry, "And the rest of the department can take care of it for a day. The Minister's right. You did more than anyone would've thought, finding three of them the same night they left. Get some rest, Potter. You've earned it."

Though he wanted to argue, Harry instead just nodded and left the Ministry, returning to Grimmauld Place. His job didn't require him to be in the Ministry, after all. He would get some rest and continue his search for Dolohov when he woke up.

Ginny was waiting for him in the sitting room and she hugged Harry tightly when he walked in. He hugged her back and kissed her.

"I'm glad you're safe," she said quietly, running her hands through his hair and kissing him again. "I got you some treacle tart and hot chocolate. Come on, have some, you sexy Auror you."

Harry smiled, walking with his wife to the kitchen. "Thank you, dear. How did you know I'd be home now?"

"Hermione sent me a message through patronus telling me what happened," explained Ginny as she cut some tart for Harry and poured him a mug of hot chocolate. "I brought my articles here to look over and thought I'd at least make sure everything was ready for you to just come home and relax. I even got some murtlap essence for you to soak in the bathtub if you needed it."

"You're too good to me," said Harry, smiling at her.

She lightly pushed his shoulder, "That can't be possible, since you're too good to me."

"Making you hide out here with me away from Lily is good?" retorted Harry, raising both eyebrows.

"Being brave enough to stand up for what's right is definitely good," said his wife sternly, sitting with him. "Don't blame yourself for everything bad, Harry." She gave a devious smile, "You do enough that I can blame you for, like forgetting to dust and always picking the wrong shade for the curtains. But never blame yourself for things like this." She kissed him on the cheek, giving him a fierce look.

Knowing she would be just as stern if Harry tried to argue about what he was responsible for, the Head Auror instead sipped at his hot chocolate. Warm, soothing and delicious, perfect for his tiring night. Now that the adrenaline rush had faded and he was in a safe, quiet location, exhaustion hit Harry like a hammer. He was tired.

Perhaps Shack had a point. Harry hated to admit it, even to himself, but the older man had been right. He wrapped his arm around Ginny, who leaned her head on his shoulder, and relaxed. Though he still fully intended to go escaped convict hunting tomorrow, right now he planned to enjoy his snack and night with his wife.


	14. Chapter 14

It was early the next morning when Harry made breakfast, his thoughts far away. Runny eggs with ham and spinach and toast were difficult to pay attention to when he knew someone dangerous was out there.

Stubborn as he was, though, Harry knew Shack had always had his best interests at heart. The older man had even left the Prime Minister to help Harry when he had been set up to be an easy target.

It was thus, grudgingly, that Harry instead turned his attention to the other pressing issues at hand. Breakfast and then… well, he needed to get more clothes. The robes he and Ginny had brought with them here were running low and needed washing. Though thinking of that made Harry remember the entire reason he was even at Grimmauld Place was due to the ICW.

Perhaps with his time off, viewing the last date in the casebook would be a wise idea. At the very least, it would set his curiosity about it at ease. Thus his agenda for the day was complete: finish breakfast, look into casebook, go home and do some chores… perhaps even pay Molly a visit and thank her for watching Lily without hesitation.

Ginny gave him a kiss as she went to eat breakfast and Harry smiled, watching her. All too soon, he was alone in the house. He would finish with Alphard's casebook first, he decided, and then go to his home and take a shower. He would get his nice fresh, untouched robes and do laundry. And then after he was settled, he would pay his in-laws a visit and stick around for an afternoon with his daughter.

Settling into his chair, Harry flipped to the back of the casebook, frowning; it wasn't that far from where he had been already. Concerned despite knowing these events had happened long ago, Harry entered the last memory in it. He looked around; he was in Hogsmeade. Alphard was outside talking with a thin man as dark as coffee with dark brown eyes. He ha a pair of sunglasses perched atop his head, over the closely cropped dark hair. The man's dark eyes were lined around the edges but aware and awake.

It was strange; the man seemed slightly familiar to Harry. But why would that be? He was certain he didn't know who this man was… He wore no uniform, meaning belonging to the ICW was probably wrong. So who was he?

"I've looked into what you asked about Alphard. You know, about kids vanishing… well, it's not just kids. It's other beings too. And other people, ones that normally wouldn't be missed." The man frowned, shaking his head, "Thing is, it's not just your case. Other people are vanishing too."

"Death Eaters?"Alphard asked tiredly.

"Pretty much," muttered the man, sighing. "You know, someone mentioned that Dumbledore's put a group together against them. With everything going on, I'm half tempted to see if that's true. Probably wouldn't even remember me though."

Alphard smiled, "I think everyone would remember you, you're pretty well-known for refusing to be an Auror. Dumbledore could definitely do with an Obliviator. You'd be well spotted to know who's missing."

"Not much help when so many people are though," said the other man with a bitter tone. "Makes me a bit useless-"

"Doc, don't you dare say that about yourself." Alphard interrupted, looking quite upset, "Don't you _dare._ You're one of the few people in the Ministry that actually gives a damn. So don't."

The other man looked at his feet, shaking his head, "You think? Tell it to those kids you found, how we managed to not see them for years even though they were right under our feet.."

"No one knew," retorted Alphard. "And without your help. I never would have been able to get half of those Muggle-borns home. Don't sell yourself short." Alphard gave the other man a fierce look. "If Dumbledore's really gathering a group, he'd be an idiot to not want your help. And we both know that he's not stupid."

Harry frowned, looking at the other man. Perhaps that answered his question… if the man had been in the Order, if he had been in the photograph of everyone, Harry would have seen him in it.

"Well, here's what I got so far," said the man, handing a bulging envelope to Alphard. "Again, I don't know how many are related to your case, but… I went to different Ministries, not the ICW, so hopefully they won't notice."

"Doc, I owe you," said Alphard, tucking the envelope into a pocket on the inside of his long gray coat. "I can't thank you enough-"

"Yeah yeah," said the man good-naturedly, waving his hand dismissively. "Neither of us can get work done if you're slobbering thanks all over me. Want to prove you're thankful, you focus on your case. And tell me whatever I can do to help." The man looked fierce, "Kids… kids shouldn't be taken away from their family unless… unless it really… unless it really _is_ better for them…" His voice cracked and the man cleared his throat.

Alphard rested a sympathetic hand on the man's shoulder. "Doc…"

Harry felt a surge of empathy. He suspected those words weren't just an idle statement.

"You've got work to do, Alphard. And so do I. But if you need me…" The Obliviator fixed the Detcro with a stare.

The detective smiled, "I'll find you. Thanks again. And if Dumbledore decides to act up or tries to say you can't help him because you're helping me, hex him for the both of us."

"Oh hell, I'll do one better and steal that hat he's always wearing. Or those socks, he kept showing them off when he was at the Ministry for the last Wizengamot meeting. Had these pink squids on them and sayings on them like 'I'm Kraken up!'" said the man, snorting with amusement.

"Dear Merlin," muttered Alphard, groaning as Harry laughed, easily able to imagine Dumbledore doing that. The two men bid each other goodbye and Harry accompanied Alphard back to his office.

He nearly crashed into the man in the memory, who had stopped short. Someone was in his office, a woman. She was sitting in Alphard's chair, leaning back in a way that Harry thought should have been illegal. Her jet black hair was a beautiful mass of waves cascading over her shoulders, her lipstick perfectly applied. Her robes were classy, displaying only her shoulders and yet sensual in a way Harry couldn't describe.

Though Veela had a pull on people, this woman had it too, stronger than even the natural one of the Veela. Harry felt himself turning red and looking away. The woman had a reaction on him that no one should except his wife.

"Lu," said Alphard, his voice hoarse. Harry could see he was adjusting his tie and sweating. At least he wasn't the only one affected by the woman. "Wh-what are you doing…" the detective trailed off as the woman tilted her head at him, giving him a puzzled look.

"I'm not broadcasting, am I?" The woman looked down at her ankles. Around them were delicately wrought anklets that seemed to be iron and the woman gave a soft tsk. "I didn't realize the clasps were undone. I'm sorry, dear cousin." A soft click went through the office and Harry gave a sigh of relief. He grinned slightly as Alphard did the same.

"Thank you."

"Perhaps you should have some water." The woman conjured a glass, filling it from her wand, and Alphard took it. He sipped and raised an eyebrow.

"So what brings you to my door?"

The woman smiled, but it was tinged with sadness and obvious concern. "Unfortunately, nothing pleasant. I've heard from one of my sources that you are still quite a target. Regulators keep thinking something needs to be done about you. And some seem serious. Be careful."

Alphard sighed, but nodded.

"One of my ladies also had a strange request from a client," said the woman, giving the desk a light drum. "The client wanted her to use Polyjuice Potion. She did and… well… it… she… was a school-aged child. Unfortunately, the client was anonymous. I retrieved a memory from her." The woman handed Alphard a slim phial, the top neatly stoppered. Alphard took it, looking grim.

"ICW client?"

"Why else would I visit you? The only questions we really have is how he got that hair. Was it his child? Another's? Unfortunately we don't know. But all of the ladies in our… establishments… know about the cases." She smiled, "I have an appointment with a few of their law enforcement officials myself. Perhaps I can get more information out of them."

"I can't believe Ignatius lets you do things like that," muttered Alphard, shaking his head.

"Have _you_ ever tried telling Lu she couldn't do something?" asked a voice from behind them, making both Harry and Alphard jump. A handsome man with red hair and warm brown eyes stood in the doorway. "Sorry Alphard."

"Iggy, you're early," said the woman, a warmth in her eyes that hadn't been there before as she stood up. "How's Molly?"

The man grinned, "She's excellent. I don't know how, all those boys in the house. Those babies are a handful already! I bet they're going to be just as outgoing as Fabian and Gideon."

"Perhaps I should send her some relaxers in that case. Or a few crates of potion to keep her hair from going gray. Those two have _quite_ the reputation…"

Alphard just shook his head as the man slid a wedding ring on the woman's hand, kissing said hand gently. Harry smiled as the woman turned red, her fingers playing with the man's hair and as he kissed her wrist, he asked, "Did you tell him?"

"Everything so far. Including plans for later this week."

The detective frowned, "You shouldn't let her do anything with people like that, Ignatius. It's dangerous."

" _Let_ me?" The woman looked positively dangerous and her husband wrapped both of his arms around her as she reached for her wand. "Let go of me, you! I'm going to hex this ungrateful idiot!"

"No hexing your cousin, dear," said Ignatius. "Come on, we're going to be late for dinner. You can be the most infamous madam in the world tomorrow night. Tonight you're my wife."

"Hmph. You're lucky Iggy's here." With that, the woman blew Alphard a kiss and, lacing her arm through her husband's arm, the two left.

Alphard looked towards Phineas's portrait. "I don't get it."

"No one does," admitted the man, shaking his head. "Except those two, I suppose. At least it's a proper marriage, even if the behavior within it isn't…"

"Definitely. Unfortunately, I can't deny she gets a lot of useful information." Alphard shook his head, "And she knows how to be discreet. Too much so. I swear she knows more than she admits… and she admits a lot."

Phineas shrugged, "Rest. You've been out all night and day."

Giving a sigh, Alphard murmured, "Perhaps you're right."

"Of course I'm right!"

Alphard shook his head, bemused, and cleared out his pockets, tidying the office slightly before leaving to his flat, Harry with him.

The flat was tidy and Alphard paused by a small leather sachet. Harry could detect a pleasant light scent that he knew from brewing potions was very likely woodruff. It was usually used in healing potions. He watched Alphard place his coat on a hook and move into the other room.

As Harry watched, Alphard began to cook. Water was boiling and the wizard flicked his wand, preparing spinach with mushrooms and walnuts. Roasted squash was soon set on the plate as was a poached egg. Harry had to admit, the meal looked quite tasty. Alphard set it down and had just opened a cabinet and taken out a glass as Harry looked at the food closer, to perhaps make it himself, when he heard a shatter.

He couldn't make out the figure; they stood in the shadows of the kitchen. But he could see the hand that had phased through Alphard's chest, where the Detcro couldn't see. Harry, however, _could_ see how it had practically crushed Alphard's heart.

"The ward was creative, Detcro," said a familiar voice. Harry _knew_ he had heard it before. But where? "No masks… clever, I'll admit… but you can't identify us anyway. even without our uniforms."

The hand squeezed once more and Alphard gasped, trying to grab something, anything.

"What I do is for the greater good," said the voice softly. "It always has been. You were a fool to listen to the Dark Lord and take his words at face value. Did you really think he would tell you everything? That you could possibly use your little spies? They won't last long either. Your cousin, your little Obliviator friend, hell, even that little nephew of yours…"

Alphard fired a spell but it was reflected almost boredly.

"All those Dark Arts, all those sleepless nights… and for what?"

The room was fading; Harry could see Alphard stumbling, the man gasping. The other person didn't move as the Detcro made it to the sofa, pulling himself up. With shaking hands, Harry saw Alphard taking out the casebook he knew so well by now.

"Goodbye Detcro Black." Footsteps sounded but Harry couldn't see the person. The room was fading rapidly.

Alphard closed his eyes, his wand touching the book. Harry saw the square form where the last entry was, the one he had entered… and then he was back in Grimmauld Place.

His heart ached. Harry rubbed at his eyes, his heart pounding. It felt as if he had just lost a close friend, despite Alphard Black being dead long before he had even been thought of.

Slowly, thinking furiously, Harry shut the casebook. Whose voice had that been? For he knew the voice, that much Harry was certain. But who…?

Sighing, he decided to go home and at least do his laundry and freshen up. He had tossed the robes into the washbin, the clothes moving over the board within the enchanted object after Harry had added detergent. He had just finished showering and putting his clothes for the day when the front door slammed open.

Instantly on guard, Harry rushed downstairs, his wand out. Two Regulators stood there, their Commander with them.

"What do you think you're doing?" Harry demanded furiously, livid as he flicked his wand to restore the door.

"Assisting you, Auror Potter," said Gagnon.

Harry froze. Realization dawned on him as he stood on the staircase, wand still held aloft in his hand.

The voice.

Why had Sirius never been able to identify the person despite having the casebook? Because he never would have heard Gagnon's voice; the man hadn't been the Commander when Sirius had been alive. And Harry hadn't connected it before because he hadn't known of the casebook, hadn't seen that memory until now…

A casebook connecting the head of ICW's Law Enforcement to a murder would give the man an _extremely_ valid reason to want Alphard's notes. He had seen the man die, he must have seen the casebook… but Dolohov had found the body. An unexpected guest might have been the only reason that this particular casebook had never reached the hands of the ICW.

"Auror Potter, is there an issue?" asked the man coolly, surveying Harry.

"Yes," said Harry slowly. "Yes, there is."

Slowly, Harry walked down the staircase, keeping his eyes on the three. His left hand held the railing loosely as he thought furiously. Backup was his immediate wish, of course; he hadn't anticipated this at all. Perhaps that was why Gagnon had struck so furiously.

His first desire for backup would be Ron, of course, or Neville. But neither of them were available to him and, given that this was an international issue, he would need to have more witnesses. His best bet for that would be getting to the Ministry.

Perhaps he shouldn't have fixed the door so quickly.

"Well, what is it?" asked Gagnon, frowning. When Harry didn't answer, the man gave a soft huff of annoyance, "Auror Potter, I am very close to having you fined for insubordination. For the love of me, I cannot imagine why a fellow member of law enforcement-"

Harry had struck before the man had finished speaking, binding him with luminous cords, gagging and disarming him. As both Regulators raised their wands, Gagnon stared at Harry. His dark eyes promised dreadful things; Harry didn't need to know Legilimency for that. It was all he could do to shield against the spell that had been fired at him by the Regulator to Gagnon's left.

"What is the meaning of this?" asked the Regulator to Gagnon's right, the disembodied voice echoing in the silence.

"Commander Timothy Gagnon is under arrest," said Harry, breathing heavily, "for the murder of Detective Necromancer Alphard Black."


End file.
